Contraceptive self-efficacy: a primary prevention strategy.

This paper discusses the development, implementation, and qualitative evaluation of an intervention designed to improve contraceptive self-efficacy (CSE) in a population at high risk for pregnancy. In a previous study, a relationship was found between CSE and a measure of contraceptive use for sexually active young women attending a family planning clinic. Here, the concept of CSE is further developed to identify contraceptive and sexual issues for adolescent males, for adolescents who show little or no motivation to obtain or use contraceptives, and for those adolescents who would plan to carry a pregnancy to term if they were to become pregnant. Implications are drawn for developing primary prevention programs.