Modeling Risky Sexual Behavior Among College Students: Predictors of STD

Abstract

It is well known that indulging in risky sexual behaviors increases one’s risk of sexually transmitted diseases (STD). Previous research shows that high-risk sexual behaviors are common among college students, even in an age of increased public awareness about the consequences of such behavior. Alcohol use is one of the main factors that is associated with the incidence of risky sexual behavior since such students are more likely to engage in risky sexual behaviors and unprotected sexual activity. Studies have shown personalized normative feedback interventions could effectively reduce students’ alcohol use and alcohol-related risky sexual behavior. To study the predictors of STDs is important to find effective interventions to reduce STDs. Since most students may consider sexual behavior as a private and sensitive question, measuring prevalence of such behavior is not easy. An Optional Unrelated Question Randomized Response Model introduced by Gupta et al. and used by Spears-Gill et al. has been shown to effectively reduce under-reporting of such behaviors by allowing subjects the option of maintaining anonymity in their answers. This model allows researchers to estimate not just the prevalence of the sensitive behavior but also the sensitivity level of the underlying research question. In this follow-up work we focus on other variables in the data. Our project will focus on estimating the relationship between STD history and several factors that may affect STD prevalence, such as age, gender, and the number of sexual partners.