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Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health

A journal of peer-reviewed research

Childhood Traumatic Experiences and Receptive Anal Intercourse Among Women

Authors

Joy D. Scheidell, New York University School of Medicine Typhanye P. Dyer, University of Maryland School of Public Health, College Park MacRegga Severe, New York University School of Medicine Yazmeen E. Tembunde, University of Maryland School of Public Health, College Park Kailyn E. Young, New York University School of Medicine Maria R. Khan, New York University School of Medicine
CONTEXT

Receptive anal intercourse (RAI), which has become increasingly common among U.S. heterosexual women, is associated with STDs, including HIV, when it is unprotected and coercive. Childhood traumatic experiences may increase sexual risk behavior, but the relationship between childhood trauma and RAI among women has not been examined.

METHODS

Data from 4,876 female participants in Waves 1 (1994–1995), 3 (2001–2002) and 4 (2007–2008) of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health were used to examine associations between nine self‐reported childhood traumas (neglect; emotional, physical and sexual abuse; parental binge drinking and incarceration; and witnessing, being threatened with and experiencing violence) and RAI during adulthood using modified Poisson regression analysis. Whether depression, low self‐esteem, drug use, relationship characteristics or sex trade involvement mediated the relationship between trauma and RAI was also explored.

RESULTS

Forty percent of the sample reported having engaged in receptive anal intercourse. After adjustment for sociodemographic characteristics, eight of the nine childhood traumas were associated with increased risk of RAI (adjusted prevalence ratios, 1.2–1.5); the strongest association was with experience of violence. Each unit increase in the number of traumas yielded a 16% increase in RAI prevalence. In mediation analyses, only drug use and relationship factors slightly attenuated the association between childhood trauma and RAI (1.2 for each).

CONCLUSIONS

Women with a history of childhood trauma may be at increased risk of engaging in RAI, highlighting the importance of screening and trauma‐informed education in sexual health settings. Pathways linking childhood trauma and RAI among women are complex and warrant further research.

Author's Affiliations

At the time the research was conducted, Joy D. Scheidell was a predoctoral trainee, MacRegga Severe was assistant research scientist, Kailyn E. Young was research coordinator and Maria R. Khan was associate professor—all at the Department of Population Health, New York University School of Medicine, New York. Typhanye P. Dyer was assistant professor and Yazmeen E. Tembunde was a doctoral student, both at the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of Maryland School of Public Health, College Park.

Disclaimer

The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of the Guttmacher Institute.
Volume 52, Issue 1
February 2020
|
Pages 23 - 30

First published online: February 24, 2020

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1363/psrh.12129
Source / Available for Purchase
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1363/psrh.12129

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