An acceptability study of the female condom undertaken at New York's Harlem Hospital between August 1993 and February 1994 enrolled 52 women aged 18-57, 41 of whom (79%) used the female condom at least once. Of these, one-half used the female condom at least three times and 40% used it once; on average, women used it 2.4 times. Two-thirds of users liked the female condom either very much or somewhat, 20% were neutral and 15% stated that they did not like it. One-half of the women reported that their partner liked the device, while 17% said he felt neutral about it and approximately one-quarter said he disliked it. Seventy-three percent of respondents and 44% of their partners preferred the female condom to the male condom.
Family Planning Perspectives, issued bimonthly since 1969, contains the results of research conducted in the United States and other developed countries. It serves researchers, policy makers and family planning program providers. Family planning is defined broadly to include contraceptive practice; fertility levels, trends and determinants; adolescent pregnancy; abortion; public policies and legal issues affecting childbearing; program operation, development and evaluation; information, education and communication activities; sexually transmitted diseases; and reproductive, maternal and child health. The journal also contains staff-written material summarizing research from other journals, discussing policy issues and providing coverage of conferences.
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Family Planning Perspectives
© 1995 Guttmacher Institute