Determinants of Zambian men's extra-marital sex: a multi-level analysis

Arch Sex Behav. 2008 Aug;37(4):517-29. doi: 10.1007/s10508-007-9243-7. Epub 2007 Nov 13.

Abstract

Research interest in extra-marital sex has increased as scholars have become aware of its role in sustaining epidemics of STDs in sub-Saharan Africa and elsewhere. While most research has used the socioeconomic and demographic features of individuals as determinants of extra-marital sexual behavior, this study examined the role played by community characteristics. Using data from the 2003 Zambian Sexual Behavior Survey for a sample of 1,118 men aged 15-59 and multilevel logistic regression techniques, the study analyzed the effects of community social and demographic characteristics on involvement in extra-marital sex while controlling for the men's individual-level characteristics. Men's involvement in extra-marital sex was found to vary with the characteristics of communities. The chances of men's involvement in extra-marital sex increased with community-level ethnic heterogeneity and urbanization, decreased in commercial centers, and in communities with a demographic surplus of males, health workers active in AIDS prevention, and access to the mass media. These results show that scholars trying to understand the motivations for extra-marital sex must pay attention to the characteristics of both individuals and communities.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study

MeSH terms

  • Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome / ethnology
  • Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome / prevention & control
  • Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome / transmission
  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Commerce
  • Cross-Cultural Comparison*
  • Cultural Diversity
  • Data Interpretation, Statistical
  • Developing Countries*
  • Extramarital Relations / ethnology*
  • HIV Infections / ethnology
  • HIV Infections / prevention & control
  • HIV Infections / transmission
  • Health Surveys
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Residence Characteristics
  • Risk Factors
  • Sexually Transmitted Diseases / ethnology
  • Sexually Transmitted Diseases / prevention & control
  • Sexually Transmitted Diseases / transmission
  • Social Environment
  • Socioeconomic Factors
  • Urbanization
  • Zambia