National Survey of Sexual Health and Behavior

http://www.nationalsexstudy.indiana.edu/

Welcome to the information and download page for the
National Survey of Sexual Health and Behavior(NSSHB).
On this site, you can learn more about the NSSHB,
download the special issue of The Journal of Sexual
Medicine in which the first 9 papers from the NSSHB are
published, and find contact information for the
investigators and study partners.

Findings from the largest nationally representative
study of sexual and sexual-health behaviors ever
fielded, conducted by Indiana University sexual health
researchers, provide an updated and much needed
snapshot of contemporary Americans' sexual behaviors,
including a description of more than 40 combinations of
sexual acts that people perform during sexual events,
patterns of condom use by adolescents and adults, and
the percentage of Americans participating in same-sex
encounters.

The National Survey of Sexual Health and Behavior
(NSSHB), conducted by researchers from the Center for
Sexual Health Promotion at Indiana University's School
of Health, Physical Education and Recreation, is one of
the most comprehensive studies on these topics in
almost two decades.  It includes the sexual experiences
and condom-use behaviors of 5,865 adolescents and
adults ages 14 to 94.

Initial findings from the survey, presented in nine
separate research articles, were published on Oct. 1 in
a special issue of The Journal of Sexual Medicine, a
leading peer-reviewed journal in the area of urology
and sexual health. The issue also includes commentaries
offering perspectives on the study from leading U.S.
sexual health authorities, including former U.S.
Surgeon General Dr. Joycelyn Elders, Dr. Kevin Fenton,
Director of the National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral
Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention at the U.S. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and Lynn
Barclay, President and CEO of the American Social
Health Association.

On this site, we make available this special issue of
The Journal of Sexual Medicine, with the goal of
helping to facilitate the use of this data to inform
the development of public health programs designed to
improve the sexual health of our society.

"This survey is one of the most expansive nationally
representative studies of sexual behavior and condom
use ever conducted, given the 80-year span of ages,"
said Michael Reece, director of the Center for Sexual
Health Promotion. "These data about sexual behaviors
and condom use in contemporary America are critically
needed by medical and public health professionals who
are on the front lines addressing issues such as HIV,
sexually transmissible infections, and unintended
pregnancy."

According to the study's findings, 1 of 4 acts of
vaginal intercourse are condom protected in the U.S. (1
in 3 among singles). "These data, when compared to
other studies in the recent past, suggest that although
condom use has increased among some groups, efforts to
promote the use of condoms to sexually active
individuals should remain a public health priority."
says Reece.

Researchers believe the findings will be of interest to
the general public, as well as to health professionals.

"People are often curious about others' sex lives,"
said Debby Herbenick, associate director of the CSHP.
"They want to know how often men and women in different
age groups have sex, the types of sex they engage in,
and whether they are enjoying it or experiencing sexual
difficulties. Our data provide answers to these common
sex questions and demonstrate how sex has changed in
the nearly 20 years since the last study of its kind."

Click here to see Sexual Behavior Graph
Herbenick said the study helps both the public and
professionals to understand how condom use patterns
vary across these varying stages in people's
relationships and across ages, adding that "findings
show that condoms are used twice as often with casual
sexual partners as with relationship partners, a trend
that is consistent for both men and women across age
groups that span 50 years."

The survey indicates that there is enormous variability
in the sexual repertoires of U.S. adults now, and adult
men and women rarely engage in just one sex act when
they have sex. While vaginal intercourse is still the
most common sexual behavior reported by adults, many
sexual events do not involve intercourse and include
only partnered masturbation or oral sex. When it comes
to responsible sexual behaviors, condom use is higher
among black and Hispanic Americans than among white
Americans and those from other racial groups.

A unique feature of the study was the inclusion of
adolescent men and women.  Dennis Fortenberry,
Professor of Pediatrics in the Indiana University
School of Medicine, led the adolescent aspects of the
study.

"Many surveys of adolescent sexual behavior create an
impression that adolescents are becoming sexually
active at younger ages, and that most teens are
sexually active," said Dr. Fortenberry. "Our data show
that partnered sexual behaviors are important but by no
means pervasive aspects of adolescents' lives. In fact,
many contemporary adolescents are being responsible by
abstaining or by using condoms when having sex."

Click here to see Condom Use Graph

Additional key findings highlighted in the collection
of papers include:

   There is enormous variability in the sexual
   repertoires of U.S. adults, with more than 40
   combinations of sexual activity described at adults'
   most recent sexual event.

   Many older adults continue to have active
   pleasurable sex lives, reporting a range of
   different behaviors and partner types, however
   adults over the age of 40 have the lowest rates of
   condom use. Although these individuals may not be as
   concerned about pregnancy, this suggests the need to
   enhance education efforts for older individuals
   regarding STI risks and prevention.

   About 85% of men report that their partner had an
   orgasm at the most recent sexual event; this
   compares to the 64% of women who report having had
   an orgasm at their most recent sexual event. (A
   difference that is too large to be accounted for by
   some of the men having had male partners at their
   most recent event.)

   Men are more likely to orgasm when sex includes
   vaginal intercourse; women are more likely to orgasm
   when they engage in a variety of sex acts and when
   oral sex or vaginal intercourse is included.

   While about 7% of adult women and 8% of men identify
   as gay, lesbian or bisexual, the proportion of
   individuals in the U.S. who have had same-gender
   sexual interactions at some point in their lives is
   higher. At any given point in time, most U.S.
   adolescents are not engaging in partnered sexual
   behavior. While 40% of 17 year-old males reported
   vaginal intercourse in the past year, only 27%
   reported the same in the past 90 days.

   Adults using a condom for intercourse were just as
   likely to rate the sexual extent positively in terms
   of arousal, pleasure and orgasm than when having
   intercourse without one.

In addition to Reece, Herbenick and Fortenberry, co-
authors include Stephanie Sanders of The Kinsey
Institute for Research in Sex, Gender, and Reproduction
and the Department of Gender Studies at IU; and Vanessa
Schick, Brian Dodge, and Susan Middlestadt of the
Center for Sexual Health Promotion at IU. The study was
funded by Church & Dwight Co. Inc., maker of Trojanr
brand sexual health products.

_____________________________________________

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