What's shame got to do with it: forced sex among married or steady partners in Uganda.

Research objectives were to understand the relationship between sexual, domestic and civil violence and the transmission of HIV/AIDS in Uganda. The focus of this paper is on forced marital sex within the context of Ugandan marital and steady partner relations. Qualitative unstructured interviews were conducted in focus group discussions and private in-depth interviews with 450 Ugandan men and women. Data analysis focused on patterns in respondents' experiences, interpretations and dialogue. Research findings illuminated how forced marital sex is induced by feelings of shame and could play a significant role in HIV/AIDS transmission. Findings suggest five interrelated reasons for forced marital sex: the absence of sexual pleasure, pregnancy, poverty, infidelity and alcohol use. Influencing the nature and extent of public and private conversations between spouses, men in drinking groups, family members and friends about the health and relational consequences of sexual violence is critical to changing normative beliefs and behavior.