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Research carried out in several Anglo-Saxon countries shows that many undergraduates identify oral sex and anal sex as examples of abstinent behaviour, while many others consider kissing and masturbation as examples of having sex. The objective of this research was to investigate whether a sample of Spanish students gave similar replies. Seven hundred and fifty undergraduates (92% aged under 26, 67.6% women) produced examples or definitions of the term 'abstinence'. Spanish students made similar errors to those observed in the Anglo-Saxon samples, in that behaviours that were abstinent from a preventive point of view (masturbating and sex without penetration) were not considered as such, while a number of students reported oral sex as abstinent behaviour. The results suggest that the information on risky and preventive sexual behaviour should cease to use ambiguous or euphemistic expressions and use vocabulary that is clear and comprehensible to everyone.
Keywords: sexual abstinence, terminology, AIDS prevention, gender differences
The use of clear and unambiguous terms is vitally important if preventive campaigns are to be effective in helping interested people to protect their health. Practising abstinence to prevent the sexual transmission of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), which causes Acquired Immuno Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), has been one of the strategies most strongly recommended to young people since the beginning of the pandemic (Barnett & Parkhurst, 2005; UNAIDS, 2006). However, research carried out with university students from different countries has shown that despite their privileged cultural education, many members of this group mistakenly believe that anal sex and oral sex are examples of abstinent behaviour (Horan, Phillips, & Hagan, 1998). Conversely, a considerable number of university students think that they are having sex if they touch their partner's breasts or genitals (Pitts & Rahman, 2001; Randall & Byers, 2003; Ritchters & Song, 1999; Sanders & Reinisch, 1999); behaviours that, from the point of view of preventing sexually transmitted diseases (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 1994), would be considered examples of abstinence. In addition, the term abstinence has religious and moral connotations for many people, meaning that they reject even what would be considered abstinent behaviour, such as kisses and touching. There is also the fear that these are the first steps towards coitus, due to the sexual excitement...