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MAY 1,

PEER-GROUP ORIENTATION, SEXUAL BEHAVIOR,
AND ATTITUDES OF COLLEGE STUDENTS
TOWARD ABORTION -

By

Raja Saliba Tanas

A DISSERTATION

Submitted to
Michigan State University
in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree of

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

Department of Sociology

1980

6-//ét9~"5”/

ABSTRACT

PEER-GROUP ORIENTATION, SEXUAL BEHAVIOR,
AND ATI'ITUDES OF COLLEGE STUDENTS
TONARD ABORTION
By

Raja Saliba Tanas

Although the Supreme Court of the U.S. legalized abortion in
1973, the abortion issue is still controversial and marked by honest
and.deeply felt differences of Opinion. Therefore, the major thrust of
this study was to investigate some of the demographic and social-
psychological factors which promote the formation of attitudes toward
abortion among never-married college students. The general theoretical
approach assumed that college attendance provides a socialization
process toward permissive abortion attitudes. The prime socializer was
proposed to be the peer group, which was thought to be more liberal as
well as to become more powerful than the family of orientation in
shaping one's attitudes toward abortion. The peer group was proposed
to encourage the development of a nontraditional sex-role ideology, a
greater clinical knowledge of sex, and more permissive attitudes toward
premarital sex, which three consequences were thought to encourage the
initiation of sexual intercourse. Among sexually active respondents, a
succession of intercourse partners and frequent sexual intercourse were
hypothesized to conduce to a subjective perception of one's fecundity.
Although no direct measures of one's biological capacity to produce
children were available, three indirect measures were employed.

Specifically, it was thought that those who practiced contraception,

Raja Saliba Tanas

who used the more efficacious contraceptive methods, and who discussed
the possibility of pregnancy with the intercourse partner would be more
likely to believe they could produce children. A subjective perception
of oneself as fecund was argued to induce more tolerant attitudes toward

abortion among the never-married.

The data on abortion attitudes presented in this investigation
were drawn from a survey of never-married, undergraduate, male and female
students enrolled at Michigan State University during the Fall term,
1976. The sample was drawn at random from current registration records.
The present study was further limited to respondents who were white, who
initiated sexual intercourse since coming to college, who had not been
raped at first sexual intercourse, and who did not experience a pregnancy
in the current or the most recent intercourse relationship. As such, the
effective sample size became 534. The primary statistical method used
was hierarchical multiple regression, which allowed the evaluation of the
contribution to the total variance explained by a test variable after

adjusting for the effects of control variables.

The analyses indicated that one's orientation to peers increased
with college tenure and contributed to a greater clinical knowledge about
sex and a greater sexual permissiveness. The latter two factors increased
the probability of nonvirginity. Among those who became sexually active
in college, contraceptive use and efficacy were not related to abortion
attitudes, while a discussion of the probability of pregnancy with the
intercourse partner was associated with more favorable attitudes toward

abortion. Some possible directions for future research were offered.

DEDICATED

To Amal Zacharia-Tanas, my wife, whose patient
support, love, intellectual challenge,
and labor made this work possible.

ii

ACKNOWIEDGMENTS

I wish to express my sincere gratitude to my dissertation director,
Dr. Nan E. Johnson, for her continued guidance, encOuragement, patience,
exceptional generosity of time, prompt and careful reading and criticizing
the manuscript while it was in preparation. I would like also to thank Dr.
James Zuiches, my graduate study advisor and member of my dissertation
committee who has been a major source of encouragement and support, for his
guidance during my graduate study. A special note of thanks is owed to Dis.
J. Allan Beegle, Thomas Conner, Harry Schwarzweller, and Christopher Vander-
pool for sitting on my graduate study committees, and for their continued

intellectual stimulation and insight.

The present data on abortion attitudes were drawn from a more
extensive study of "Factors which Influence Sexual Behavior, Contraceptive
Use and Choice among Never-Married College Students.” I am especially
grateful to the principal investigator of the study, Dr. David Kellen, for
the two-year financial support during which I worked as a Research Assistant
on the project, and for his invaluable input during the early stages of this
investigation. Special appreciation also is extended to members of the
research team: Judith Stephenson, the project director, Carol Ihrling,
and Jo Dossey for their helpful contributions to this inquiry. The sponsor
of the major study is gratefme acknowledged: The National Institute of
Child Health and Human Development; contract number, 1 R01 HD10689-02. In
addition, I wish to acknowledge the financial support I received for three
years from the Department of Sociology, Michigan State University, in the
form of a Teaching Assistantship.

iii

TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF TABLES .
CHAPTER

I. INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . .

II. LITERATURE REVIEW, THEORY, AND HYPOTHESES

III. DESIGN OF THE STUDY . . . . . . . .
Measures . . . . . . . . . . . .
Year in School . . . . . . . .
Peer-Group Orientation . . .
Sex-Role Ideology . . .

Sex Knowledge . . . . . . . .
Sexual Permissiveness . . . .
NonVirgini ty 0 O O I O O O I 0

Frequency of Intercourse . . . .

Number of Lifetime Intercourse Relationships

Contraceptive Use . . . . .

Contraceptive Efficacy . . . . .

Level of Commitment to Intercourse Partner

Residence . . . . . . . . . .

Religious Affiliation . . . .

Religiosity . . . . . . . . . .

Abortion Attitudes . . . . . . .
Statistical Procedures . . . . . .

Structural Equations . . . .
IV. PRESENTATION OF FINDINGS .

Year in School and.Peer-Group Orientation .
Peer-Group Orientation, Sex-Role Ideology, Sex
Knowledge, and Sexual Permissiveness . .

Sex-Role Ideology, Sex Knowledge, Sexual

Permissiveness, and Nonvirginity .

Nonvirginity and.Attitudes Toward.Abortion
Frequency of Intercourse, Number of Lifetime Intercourse

Partners, and Contraceptive Use and Efficacy . .

Contraceptive Use, Contraceptive Efficacy, and

Attitudes Toward Abortion . . .
Ad Hoc Analyses . . . . . . . .

on Attitudes Toward Abortion . .
V. CONCLUSIONS
BIBLIOGRAPHY .

APPENDIX A. TIME-LINE CHART . . .

iv

0 &
Summary of the Direct Effects of the Study Variables

Page

. 79

104
11#
123

LIST OF TABLES
Table Page

3.1 Means and Standard Deviations of the Study Variables
by Year in School . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

4.1 Matrix of Zero-Order Correlation Coefficients for
Variables in Hypotheses I Through IV; Males . . . . . . . . 63

4.2 Matrix of Zero-Order Correlation Coefficients for
Variables in Hypotheses I Through IV; Females . . . . . . . 64

4.3 Hierarchical Regression of Self-Disclosure to Peers
Upon Year in School . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

4.4 Hierarchical Regression of’Perception of Peers' Sexual
Intimacy Upon Year in School . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

4.5 Hierarchical Regression of Sex-Role Ideology Upon Self-Dis-
closure to Peers and.Perception of Peers' Sexual Intimacy. . 70

4.6 Hierarchical Regression of Sex Knowledge Upon Self-Dis-
closure to Peers and.Perception of Peers' Sexual Intimacy. . 72

4.7 Hierarchical Regression of Sexual Permissiveness Upon
Self-Disclosure to Peers and.Perception of'Peers'
Sexual Intimacy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1. . . 74

4.8 Hierarchical Regression of Nonvirginity Upon Sex-Role
Ideology, Sex Knowledge, and Sexual Permissiveness . . . . . 77

4.9 Hierarchical Regression of Attitudes Toward Abortion
Upon Nonmginity O O O C C C O O C O I O O O O O I I O O O 81

4.10 Matrix of Zero-Order Correlation Coefficients for Variables
in Hypotheses V and VI; Males . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

4.11 Matrix of Zero-Order Correlation Coefficients for Variables
in Hypotheses V and VI; Females . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

4.12 Hierarchical Regression of Contraceptive Use Upon
Frequency of Intercourse and Number of Intercourse
Partners 0 O O O O O 0 O O O O O O O O O O I O O O O I I I I 87

4.13 Hierarchical Regression of Contraceptive Efficacy Upon
Frequency of Intercourse and.Number of Intercourse
Partners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Table Page

4.14 Hierarchical Regression of Attitudes Toward Abortion
Upon Contraceptive Use and Contraceptive Efficacy . . . . . 91

4.15 Hierarchical Regression of Discussion of Conceptive
Risk Upon Frequency of Intercourse . . . . '.' . . . . . . . 93

4.16 Hierarchical Regression of Attitudes Toward Abortion
Upon Discussion of Conceptive Risk. . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

4.17 Summary Table of Hierarchical Regression of Attitudes
Toward Abortion Upon the Study Variables (Model I) . . . . . 97

4.18 Summary Table of Hierarchical Regression of Attitudes
Toward Abortion Upon the Study Variables (Model II) . . . . 100

vi

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

More than seven years have passed since the U.S. Supreme Court
made induced abortion legal under any circumstance in the first trimester
of pregnancy as long as the woman and her physician approve it. But the
Supreme Court ruling did not settle the abortion controversy once and
for all. That the abortion issue is still marked by honest and deeply
felt differences of opinion suggests that public policy with respect to

abortion may still be subject to change.

The public's attitudes, the norms, the values, and the condi-
tions by which abortion could be justified have been changing rapidly
toward more liberalization since the beginning of the 1960's. Before
the 1960's, abortion was not publicly discussed or legally permitted
under any circumstance: abortion was a criminal offense against the
unborn (McCary, 1973: 470 - 471; McCormick, 1975: 46). In 1962, the
American Law Institute recommended that induced abortion should be
legalized under the following special circumstances: if the life of
the mother was endangered by birth, if there was medical evidence that
the child would be born with physical or mental deformities, or if the
pregnancy was the outcome of incest or rape. This recommendation was
subsequently developed into a law which was passed by seventeen states
and the District of Columbia between 1967 and 1970 (Westoff and.Nestoff,

1971‘: 138).

2

In conformity with the recommendation of the American Law
Institute, the American Medical Association amended its official
position on abortion in 1967, for the first time since 1870. Between
1967 and 1973, anti-abortion laws were challenged and were modified in
some states. Finally, in January, 1973. the Supreme Court of the United
States ruled (7 to 2) that abortion was legal under any circumstance
during the first trimester of pregnancy (McCary, 1973: 470). During
the remaining period of pregnancy, however, the state would regulate
the performance of abortion and.might deny it to a pregnant woman if
her health or life was not in danger (Knowles, 1973: 113; Sarvis and
Rodman, 1973: 68 - 69). Since "health" could be interpreted broadly
as both physical and mental, the Court's ruling, practically speaking,
allowed induced abortion throughout the entire period of pregnancy.
In July,1976, the Supreme Court further ruled that no related parties,
such as the parents or the husband.of a pregnant woman, could veto

her decision to abort (Blake, 1977b: 45).

The general public's attitudes toward induced abortion are
still ambivalent. Blake (1977a) argued that the legalization of
abortion in 1973 reflected the attitudes of the U.S. Supreme Court
rather than of the public. A 1976 national Gallup poll indicated that
the sample was almost split in its response to the following question:
"A constitutional amendment has been proposed which would prohibit
abortions except where the pregnant woman's life is in danger. Would
you favor this amendment which would prohibit abortion or would you
oppose it?" Forty-five percent were in favor, and 49 percent were

against such an amendment. The remaining six percent had no opinion

3
(Blake, 1977b: 60). Blake (1977a) and Zimmerman (1977) contended that
the majority of the American people still disapprove or seriously

question the legal right of a woman to a voluntary abortion.

The current American debate on abortion may reflect a worldwide
trend toward its legalization. While abortion has been used in the United
States as a complementary method to contraception, it has been used as a
primary means of reducing fertility in the socialist countries of Central
and Eastern Europe and.in Japan. In these latter countries, induced
abortion has been a response to population pressures (Davis, 1963). From
a global view, more than one-third (36 percent) of the world population
is currently living in countries which provide abortion services with-
out any restrictions. For another one-third (35 percent), abortion is
legally available only in cases of rape, incest, unweddedness of the
pregnant woman, and high probability of fetal deformity. For 15 percent
of the world population, abortion is legal only if the life of the mother
is in danger due to pregnancy: and for the remaining 15 percent, abortion

is absolutely prohibited (Nortman, 1977: 25).

The change in the legal status of abortion in the U.S., wrought
by the 1973 Supreme Court decision, may be functionally related to changes
in other social institutions. Of primary importance is the changing
status of women which can be inferred from the following developments:
the reemergence of women's rights organizations which have promoted pro—
abortion ideologies (Nestoff and Westoff, 1971: 145 - 146), increase in
labor force participation of women, in general, and maternal employment,
in particular (Hoffman, 1977), postponement of first marriage by one year

between 1970 and 1978 (Current Population Reports, 1978), increase in the

4
proportion of women pursuing advanced education (Hoffman, 1974), delay in
having children, having fewer children, and an increase in the proportion
of women engaging in premarital sex (Hoffman. 1977). These developments
may indicate that the time spent by women in familial and mothering acti-
vities, and their dependence on family support systems have decreased.

As time spent by women in familial settings decreases, the peer group
may be gaining a greater influence on one's attitudes and behavior: such

as, on one's abortion attitudes and contraceptive practices.

This study will investigate the influence of the peer group on
the development of attitudes toward abortion. Some sources show that a
larger proportion of aborters are unmarried than are married.(Abortion
and the Changing Law, 1970: Spencer, 1970: Tietze and Lewit, 1973:
Batman fl. . 1977; Tietze and Lewit, 1977). However, the relatively
few studies of abortion attitudes have focused largely upon the currently
married. Therefore, studies of the development of abortion attitudes
among the unmarried can better infOrm public policy and health care delivery
systems. Furthermore, analyses including data gathered from both males
and females can show whether the social context producing given social-
psychological dispositions toward abortion might differ between them.
Therefore, this dissertation will analyze social and demographic correlates
of abortion attitudes among never-married men and women students at

Michigan State University.

In Chapter Two, the pertinent literature is reviewed and the
theoretical framework is developed, followed by a statement of six major
research hypotheses. In Chapter Three, the sample respondents, the opera-

tional measures and variables, and statistical procedures for the tests

5
of the hypotheses are defined and discussed. In Chapter Four, the
analyses and findings of the study are presented. Finally, in Chapter
Five, the findings of the study are summarized; and their implications

are explored.

CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW, THEORY, AND HYPOTHESES

The general theoretical approach employed in this study
utilizes reference group theory. It assumes that sexual behavior of
never-married students is influenced by the sexual behavior of their
peers as well as by the presence or absence of discussion of sexual
matters with them. The theoretical approach also assumes that attitudes
toward abortion are closely related to sexual and contraceptive behavior.
Coitally active students who use contraception consciously perceive
and seek to minimize the risk of conception. Within this context,
abortion may be perceived as needed in case of contraceptive failure,
and, therefore, more favorable attitudes toward abortion may be
expressed. In short, the theoretical approach assumes that peer groups
affect the development of one's sexual attitudes and behaviOr and, by

extension, of attitudes toward abortion.

The term."reference group" was first introduced by Hyman
(1942), who elaborated and explored some of its properties in his
study of "The Psychology of Status." In this study, Hyman was interes-
ted in eXploring the processes through which individuals subjectively
evaluated themselves in terms of a variety of statuses; such as,
economic and intellectual statuses. For each status evaluated, respon—
dents were requested to identify the social milieu within which they
evaluated themselves in the respective status. The social milieu was
reported in terms of people and individuals the respondent knew and

6

7
used as points of reference by which he compared and evaluated him-
self. Thus, a reference group means a group of people or some individ-
uals to which one compares his or her attitudes and behavior (Hyman,
1942) or from which one acquires values for the guidance of his or

her behavior (Shibutani, 1962: 128).

Kelley (1952) distinguished between normative and comparative
reference groups. A normative reference group assumes the function
of "norm setting and norm enforcement." Normative reference groups
are relatively few in number. Some examples are one's family of
orientation, workmates, and immediate close friends such as in frater-
nity or sorority living arrangements. A normative reference group
develops its own peculiar sets of values, norms, and.expectations.
Expression of attitudes and development of behavior within this
group must be compatible with the group's norms. If, however, an
individual does not adhere to the group's norms, he or she experiences
a feeling of guilt and rejection which may eventually result in his or
her separation or receiving disfavor from the group. In this respect,
the grOUp is in a position to award recognition or punishment for
conformity or nonconformity, respectively. Therefore, in this kind
of social arrangement, the individual feels continuously motivated as
well as pressured to conform to what the group defines as normative
for the purpose of gaining or maintaining acceptance by its members
(Kelley, 1952: 413).

While a normative reference group is both a source and an
enforcer of norms, a comparative reference group is in itself the

norm (Kelley, 1952). Compared to the relatively few and well defined

8

normative reference groups, comparative reference groups are numerous
and loosely defined. Comparative reference groups can be of a wide
variety in terms of size and scope. They vary, for example, from

the general population in one's race, gender, ethnic group, age cate-
gory, religious, and professional groups to more specific groups such
as one's casual acquaintances and college peers in the same locality.
A comparative reference group serves as a standard or a yardstick
against which an individual makes judgements and decisions. In

this respect, an individual begins to resocialize himself or herself
with standards of the comparative reference group even without being

exposed to direct interaction with all of its members (Kelley, 1952).

Kelley (1952) also contended that a complete reference
group theory must take into consideration both the normative and
comparative functions of groups. He stated that the normative and
comparative reference groups either exert separate influences or
joint influences on the formation of one's attitudes, opinions,

beliefs, and behavior.

While Kelley (1952) developed a distinction between two types
of reference groups, Newcomb (1958) developed.a distinction between two
processes through which reference groups operate on the individual.
Based on his study of "Attitude Development as a Function of Reference
Groups: The Bennington Study", Newcomb concluded that the formation of
-attitudes is a "function of relating oneself to some group or grOUps,
positively or negatively" (p. 275). In other words, Newcomb suggested

that two types of reference group influences, positive and.negative,

9
Operate whenever an individual judges social phenomena. In this
respect, an individual may Oppose norms of one group while simultaneously
adopting norms of another group. This implies that an individual is
continuously and simultaneously confronted with duplicative or contra-

dictory norms of more than one group (normative and/or comparative).

Given the multiplicity of reference groups, each group may
exercise an influence over some specialized sphere on one's attitudes
and/or behavior. However, in most of the instances, more than one
group (normative or comparative, or a combination of both) simultan-
eously exerts influences over the same sphere. Norms and values of
these groups may reinforce each other, if they are compatible across
groups, or may bring about an inner conflict within the individual
if they are not compatible. In the latter situation, an individual
is, therefore, left with contradictory alternatives which he or she
has to privately debate before he or she can make a selection (Riley

and Riley, 1968).

How an individual resolves contradictory demands placed upon
him or her by incompatible reference groups is an important problem of
reference group theory. A variety of social psychologists have dealt
with this issue. The general consensus appears to be that individuals
establish a hierarchical order of their reference groups in terms of
importance and legitimate exercise of power over their attitudes and
actions (Merton and Rossi, 1968; Sherif, 1968; Charters and Newcomb,
1958: Hartley, 1960; Kelley, 1952; Rosen, 1955; Riley and Riley, 1968).
Accordingly, the pressures toward conformity exerted by these reference

groups are weighted differently by the individual. That is, an

10

individual may simultaneously yield, to a varying degree, to all or to
a subset Of the referent messages proposed to him or her by the diverse
sources of pressure. Subsequently, the resultant attitude or behavior
may be viewed as the weighted average of these referent messages which

were carefully studied by the individual (Saltiel and Noelfel, 1975).

In the present study, one's peers are thought to provide
important reference groups which exert positive or negative influences
upon one's general attitudes or behavior. Some peers may serve as
normative groups; such as those in friendship cliques, fraternities,
or sororities. Other peers may serve as comparative groups; such as,
those in one's field of study, in one's race, or even in the whole
college student body. In this respect, college years provide a unique
experience to the student not only in the attainment of higher education
(which is taken for granted as the primary function of college), but
also in the exposure to new normative and comparative reference groups
which may question the existing social order and may lead to rejection

or modification of one's former attitudes and behaviors.

Douvan (1975) argued that peers become more powerful than
the family of orientation in shaping one's attitudes and behaviors
after matriculation. This phenomenon need not imply that the two
reference groups are incompatible; one can select reference groups
which reinforce values supported by the family of orientation. There
is empirical evidence, however, that the peer group is less traditional
than the family of orientation on a variety of attitudinal dimensions
(Rosen, 1955; Brittain, 1963; Lewis, 1973; Walsh e3_al;, 1976). Further-

more, it is reasonable to argue that peers should be more liberal than

11

the family of orientation with regard to sex-role ideology, premarital

sex, and attitudes toward abortion.

Sex—role ideology refers to two interrelated and complemen-
tary dimensions (see Holter, 1970). The normative dimension, which
is of primary concern in this study, consists of institutionalized
agreements or expectations regarding the assignment of tasks, resources,
privileges, and.burdens to men and women in a society. The belief
dimension, on the other hand, consists of three types of assumptions,
any one type of which is sufficient to support traditional sex-role
norms. These three types of beliefs are: 1) beliefs in in-born
differences between males and.females regarding psychological traits
and/Or mental and.physical capabilities; 2) beliefs in sex-role
differentiation as laid out by a supernatural or divine power; and
3) beliefs that sex-role differentiation should increase efficiency
in carrying out certain tasks (Holter, 1970: 21). As such, a one-to-
one correspondence between a type of sex—role belief and a sex-role
norm is posited. If women, for example, are believed inferior to men
intellectually, a norm may develop that males should be given preference

over females in admission to college.

The peer group should be more likely than one's family of
orientation to support "equality between the sexes and freedom to
choose social roles according to personal need rather than social
(gender) stereotypes" (Seward, 1970: 123). This position seems plausible
for several reasons. First, college entrance should be selective Of
persons with less traditional sex-role ideologies. Low socioeconomic

status (Astin, 1975) and plans for marriage (Bayer, 1969) have been

12

found to prevent college entrance. Since persons of lower socioeconomic
status and those who value marriage and maternity are generally found
to hold traditional sex-role ideologies (Rainwater, 1965; Stolka and
Barnett, 1969; Tobin, 1976), college entrance should be more selective
of persons with nontraditional sex-role orientations. This effect is
posited to be stronger for females than for males, since low socio-
economic status is less inhibitive of male than of female entrance
into college (Astin, 1975) and since marital plans are more inhibitive
of female than of male entrance into college (Bayer, 1969). Further-
more, after college entry, attrition should selectively remove the
more sex-role traditional women (Astin, 1975). Consequently, college
attendance probably exposes one to nontraditional sex-role models,

the effect being more pronounced for females than for males.

Peer-group orientation should also promote sexual permissive-
ness and sex knowledge. It was mentioned earlier that, during the
college years, the normative function of one's family of orientation
may decrease while the normative and comparative functions of peers
probably increase. Since college students escape the direct and
close supervision of their families of orientation, college peers
develop their own norms and values. In this respect, one's peers serve
both as norm setters (normative function) and role models (comparative
function). Schulz g§_alL, (1977) suggested that students enter college
with certain sets of attitudes and values which may encourage or
discourage premarital sexual behavior. These attitudes and values
may, in turn, influence the selection of friends. That is, a freshman
student who, upon entrance into college, has nontraditional attitudes

and values may be more likely than a student with traditional attitudes

13
and.values to choose peers or living arrangements (e.g., fraternity

or sorority) which may be supportive or inducible of premarital sex.

Peers were found to be liberal in their attitudes and
behavior regarding sexual matters (Teevan, 1972; Walsh, Ferrell, and
Tolone, 1976). Reiss (1967: 129 — 139) and Teevan (1972) reported
that both oneksimmediate family and peers are primary sources Of
sexual attitudes and values. Furthermore, respondents tended to
identify more closely with their peers than with their parents regarding
sexual permissiveness. Based on a sexual permissiveness scale, Reiss
(1967) found a strong relationship between the self-reported per-
missiveness of respondents and the perceived permissiveness of their
peers and close friends. In this respect, seventy-seven percent of
the total sample perceived their sexual permissiveness as similar
to that of their peers. Reiss, therefore, concluded that "there is a
general tendency for the individual to perceive his parents' permissive-
ness as a low point on a permissiveness continuum and.his peers' per-
missiveness as a high point, and to place himself somewhat closer to
his peers, particularly to those he regards as his close friends"
(Reiss, 1967: 139).

In a longitudinal study, Walsh g£_al;, (1976) reported that
an increase in the sexual permissiveness of never—married undergraduate
students as they progressed through college was a function of the
increasing orientation of students toward peers. Similarly, Mirande
(1968) and Teevan (1972) found that one's peers were a primary source
of sexual attitudes. In these studies, the influence of peers on

one's sexual attitudes (whether toward greater or lesser permissiveness)

14

was direct via the explicitly stated expectations (normative function)
and.indirect via the respondent's perception of his or her peers'
actual behavior (comparative function). That pressures toward confor-
mity to peers' norms and expectations were greater among upper- than
lower-classmen was thought to be a function of the greater integration

of upper-classmen into the peer subculture (Mirande, 1968).

Research findings have also indicated that greater sexual
permissiveness among college peers was accompanied by greater sexual
intimacy. Teevan's (1972) analysis of data drawn from a national
sample of never-married college students has indicated a significant
positive relationship between one's sexual permissive standards and
his or her sexual intimacy. In the same study, Teevan also reported
that peers' sexual permissiveness was the most important variable in
predicting the respondent's sexual behavior. Similarly, Schulz 22_éli!
(1977) and.Nirande (1968) reported that the perceived sexual attitudes
and behavior of peers have the largest effect on the respondent's
sexual behavior. In these two studies, students having had coitus
associated themselves with peers who were more permissive in their
attitudes toward premarital sex whereas virgins associated themselves
with peers who discouraged premarital intercourse. Furthermore,
Schulz 22_§l'v and Mirande have also indicated greater consistency
between the respondent's sexual permissiveness and behavior, and
sexual permissiveness of peers in a well defined group (such as
fraternity or sorority) than of peer groups loosely defined (such as

students of the same gender).

While previous research has shown that sexual permissiveness

15
is positively related to sexual intimacy (Mirande, 1968; Teevan, 1972),
it has also shown a definite and strong relationship between sexual
permissiveness and attitudes toward abortion. In a study of 454
never-married undergraduate female students, Mirande and Hammer (1974)
reported a strong positive relationship between attitudes toward pre-
marital sexual behavior and abortion attitudes, net of the effects of
age and religious affiliation. A positive relationship between sexual
permissiveness and abortion attitudes was also reported by Maxwell's
(1970) study of 323 undergraduate male and female students. Maxwell
suggested that abortion attitudes might be an extension of attitudes
toward premarital sex. He contended that since permissive sexual
attitudes might lead to premarital intercourse, which would involve a
probability of conception, abortion might appear as a reasonable
solution to a potential problem if a conception were not desired.

Then favorable attitudes toward abortion would develop.

It follows, therefore, that from the reference group
perspective, one's peers provide both the normative (norm setters and
enforcers) and comparative (role models) functions with respect to
sexual attitudes and behavior. With respect to the normative function
of the peer reference group, Komarovsky (1976) has shown that noncon-
formity to peers' sexual standards and expectations led to painful
experiences for the respondent. Interviewing a randomly selected
sample of senior students of an Ivy League male college, Komarovsky
elaborated on the painful experiences virgin males had to undergo
for not joining their "buddies in sexual adventures" (p. 67). According

to Komarovsky, virginity status was in itself a "disturbing personal

16

problem" (p. 107) for the majority of virgin males. Furthermore, peer
pressure to participate in premarital sexual behavior led to feelings
of guilt, indecision, and inadequacy among sexually inexperienced
males. As one senior male put it:

"The question of sex is really a very serious problem

for a sensitive person. It's bad because when a guy

gets to college he is going to feel inadequate as a

man if he doesn't have a certain amount of experience.

He is going to be different from other guys and they

all make such tO-do about it" (Komarovsky, 1976: 108).
In another study, Kanin (1967) has demonstrated that respondents whose
peers were engaged in coital activity were more likely to have also
experienced coitus than respondents whose peers were not so engaged.
Furthermore, respondents who were virginal and whose peers were
coitally active were reluctant to admit virginity. In this study,
seventy percent of the males who stated that they were under a "great

deal" or "considerable" pressure from peers reported that they could

not admit to virginity without loss of status in the peer group.

With respect to the comparative function Of the peer group,
Mirande (1968) and Teevan (1972) contended that a respondent's
perception of peers' attitudes and.behavior regarding sexual matters
provides a framework within which one justifies his or her position
on such issues. In this respect, college students justify their
premarital sexual behavior by saying or rationalizing to themselves

that they are so sanctioned by their peers.

One's peers also function as sources of sexual, reproductive,
and contraceptive information. It can be argued that one's involvement

with peers who are permissive or are engaged in premarital sexual

17

activities, provides a suitable socializing milieu to discuss and
reciprocate information about sexual skills, contraceptive practices,
and other sexual concerns (Spanier, 1977). Thompson and.Spanier (1977)
and Gebhard (1977) reported that peers provided a primary source of
sex knowledge. According to Finkel and Finkel (1975) and Thornburg
(1972), peers were the most frequent source of such information as
usage of condoms, length of time the sperm remains alive, and homo-
sexuality and prostitution. Thornburg's (1972) study examined the
contribution of eight sources of sex information such as peers, parents,
schools, literature, and physicians among college students in two
universities. Peers were found to have assumed a greater influence
than any other source. In this study, college peers contributed 38

percent of the respondent's total score of sex knowledge.

The peers' influence toward greater sex knowledge is hypothe-
sized tO contribute to greater sexual intimacy. One may argue, however,
that greater sexual intimacy may also contribute to greater sex knowledge.
In this respect, Spanier (1976a) argued that the directionality of the
relationship between sex knowledge and premarital sexual behavior is,
not clearly understood. The available data on sex knowledge and
sexual behavior are cross-sectional, and a study with a longitudinal
design is needed in order to assess the relationship between these
two variables.4 However, based on data from a national probability
sample of 1,177 American college male and female students, Spanier
(1976a) reported a significant relationship between sex knowledge and
premarital sexual involvement after controlling for the effects of
"religiosity, social class, age, year in school, familial sexual

conservatism, rural-urban differences, and several socialization

18
variables" (p. 252). In this study, Spanier concluded that a greater
sex knowledge was a significant contributing factor to greater sexual
involvement. He argued that before engaging in premarital sexual
behavior, an individual must acquire a minimal amount of sex informa-
tion. This sex information may, in turn, lead to sexual experimen-

tation.

It must be emphasized, however, that sex knowledge in itself
is not a sufficient condition for motivating an individual to engage
in sexual experimentation but could become a potential contributing
factor for this behavior if such circumstances as the source and range
of sex education, sex topics discussed, and the way in which the
transmission of sex information is handled are facilitating. For
example, the various sources of sex knowledge can be dichotomized into
(1) formal sources, such as school classrooms; and (2) informal sources,
such as one's family of orientation and the peer group. Spanier (1976b)
reported that among male and female respondents, formal sex-educating
experiences were not significantly related, while informal sex-educating
experiences were significantly related to the respondent's premarital
sexual involvement. Furthermore, Spanier (1977) found that female
respondents who reported their mothers as the major source of sex
information were less likely than female respondents who reported their
peers as the major source of sex information to have engaged in prema-
rital sexual behavior. Similarly, male respondents who reported
clergymen as the major source of sex information were less likely than
male respondents who reported their peers as the major source of sex
information to have had coitus. In this respect, Spanier argued that

along with the transmission of substantive sex information, mothers

19
and clergymen were also likely to have communicated attitudes, norms,
and values which discouraged premarital sexual involvement while peers
were likely to have communicated an orientation which encouraged
sexual intercourse. Spanier further reasoned that a value orientation
toward premarital sexual intercourse is less likely to be presented
with clinical information about human reproduction when such clinical

information comes from formal than from informal sources.

It follows from the above, that it is not sex knowledge per
se but the source as well as the context within which this information
is transmitted which has an impact on premarital sexual involvement
(Lewis, 1973; Spanier, 1977). Since most sex information comes from
peers (Finkel and Finkel, 1975: Thornburg, 1972) who tend to be sexually
permissive (Teevan, 1972; Walsh, Ferrell, and Tolone, 1976), respondents
who have the most sex information are hypothesized to have had sexual
intercourse. It is important to remember, however, that the above
reported studies were based on cross-sectional data and the relationship
between sex knowledge and sexual behavior may not be fully understood

without longitudinal research.

Sex—role egalitarianism should also increase the sexual
permissiveness and.intimacy of college students. Since "the law of
marriage is still geared to a time when it was important to use sex
as a means of enticing people into marriage and.childbearing" (Blake,
1972: 94), persons having a liberal orientation toward sex roles may
be unwilling to view intercourse as the monopoly of the married.
Furthermore, the development of nontraditional career commitments,

particularly for female students, may lead college students into

20
premarital liaisons by postponing the age at which marriage might
feasibly occur. These relationships may explain the findings of Fox
and Fox (1977): who reported that college students who assumed nontra-
ditional sex-role orientations were more likely than traditional
students to engage in premarital coital activity. Other evidence
among married women (Abernethy, 1978) indicated that women who assumed
nontraditional sex-role orientations were more likely to initiate coitus

than traditionally oriented women.

Sex-role orientation should be related to the use or nonuse
of contraception, the contraceptive technique(s) employed, and the
point in the sexually intimate relationship at which contraception is
initiated. For example, one traditional sex-role belief distinguishes
between good and bad women on the basis of interest in and desire for
sexual intercourse:

"Good women are basically mothers; they run households,

take care of children and of husbands. While they are

receptive to their husbands sexually, they do not inde—

pendently seek sexual gratification ... Bad women, of
course, are mainly interested in sex, and are to be found

mostly in bars and hotel rooms" (Rainwater, 1960: 79—80).

A rejection of her sexuality may prevent a sex-role traditional female
from using contraception at all. This fact may partly account for
Stokes and Dudley's (1972) finding that married couples having a

sharp, traditional segregation of sex roles were more likely to employ
male contraceptive methods (e.g., condom or withdrawal). Since sex-role
traditional women are thought to avoid female contraceptive techniques
requiring genital contact, they may avoid such methods as diaphragms,
jellies, and foam (Rainwater, 1960: 155 - 156). They may also be

reluctant to use pills and intrauterine devices, since the advanced

21
planning required by these physician—administered methods betrays a
concern for sexual intercourse which traditional women may wish to
deny. Since a traditional sex-role ideology rejects contraception
requiring female initiative, traditional couples may employ no

contraception at all or only the male methods.

Regardless of the contraceptive technique employed by a couple,
sex—role traditionalism may inhibit contraceptive efficacy. Traditional
women tend to view bearing and mothering of children as central to the
feminine role while nontraditional women regard occupational achievement
as a viable alternative to or supplement of motherhood (Scanzoni and
McMurry, 1972; Hoffman and.Nyatt, 1960). Since women with traditional
sex-role orientations view employment and occupational achievement as
potential threats to their femininity (Hoffman and.Nyatt, 1960), they
may not view accidental conceptions as disfavorably as do sex-role
egalitarian women. Consequently, traditional women may tend to have a
larger number of children by being less motivated than nontraditional
women to use contraception regularly and/or efficaciously (Stolka and
Barnett, 1969; Clarkson gp_§l;, 1970) and less willing to resort to

abortion as means of terminating a pregnancy.

Couples with traditional sex-role orientations begin to contra-
cept at a later time after marriage than egalitarian couples (Rainwater,
1960). A partial explanation for this phenomenon may be that couples
in highly segregated (traditional) sex-role relationships are less likely
than couples in jointly organized sex-role relationships to communicate
regarding many family affairs, including contraception and childbearing.
A greater communication between husband and wife gives a couple an

opportunity to decide on the number of children desired and, once that

22

goal is defined, to practice contraception regularly and efficaciously
(Hill gp_§l;, 1955; Rainwater, 1965). The poorer communication between
sex-role segregated. couples may mean that a discussion of contraception
and reproductive goals does not occur until births have begun to impinge
on familial resources (Rainwater, 1960). These relationships may account
for Stokes and Dudley's (1972: 158) finding that the percentage of couples
practicing contraception before their first birth declined as the degree

of conjugal role segregation increased.

From the foregoing considerations, it appears logical that
nontraditional sex-role orientations should lead to more liberal
orientations toward abortion among never-married college students. By
promoting nontraditional views about gender roles, college peers are
likely to encourage a greater and more efficacious use of contraception,
initiation of contraception at an early point in the sexual relationship,
employment of female contraceptive methods, nontolerance of accidental
conceptions, and acceptance of abortion as a means of terminating a
pregnancy. Sex-role orientations are, therefore, hypothesized to be
one social—psychological bridge through which peers would influence

the abortion attitudes of college students.

The discussion thus far suggested that a greater sexual
permissiveness, a greater sex knowledge, and a greater>nontraditional
sex-role ideology should lead to a greater probability of nonvirginity.
However, not everyone involved in intercourse relationships is hypothe-
sized to perceive the risk of pregnancy and to seek to minimize it
through the employment of contraception (Callahan, 1970: 293) and
(as a backup method) abortion. Several studies of unwed mothers have

found that contraception was irregularly practiced prior to conception.

23
Bowerman et al., (1966) reported that only 10 percent of the white and

7 percent of the nonwhite mothers bearing children out of wedlock had

used contraception in every sexual encounter. Zelnik and.Kantner's (1972)
study Of unwed females showed the single most important reason for their
nonuse of contraception was the belief that they would not become
pregnant. In addition, Sklar and Berkov's (1973) analysis of data

fOr California in 1972 indicated that despite the accessibility of

legal abortions in that state, the illegitimate birth rate had appeared
to level Off. They concluded, therefore, that although legal abortion
had had a greater impact in reducing illegitimate than legitimate
parenthood in California, there were significantly large proportions

of unwed females who abjured abortion.

It would seem fair to assume that many individuals who are
motivated to avoid conception would use contraceptive techniques and,
in case of experiencing a contraceptive failure, they would be receptive
to abortion. In the 1965 National Fertility Study of 5,600 currently
married women under the age of 55, Ryder and.Nestoff (1971: 286) repor—
ted a positive relationship between attitudes toward contraceptive use
and.abortion attitudes. The most favorable attitudes toward abortion V
were expressed by women who were currently using the pill, who had
used the pill but interrupted its use temporarily, or who indicated
that they might use the birth control pill in the future. Less
favorable attitudes toward abortion were shared by women who used the
pill for a short period of time but rejected its use later on, while
women who indicated no knowledge of the pill expressed the least
favorable attitudes toward abortion. Similarly, McCormick (1975), in
her study of abortion attitudes among women who were undergoing induced

abortion, reported that women who practiced contraception before they

24

became pregnant and women who intended to use contraception in the
future were more favorable towards a future abortion than women who

did not practice and/or did not intend to practice contraception.

The probability of employing contraception is hypothesized
to be significantly related to the type of relationship with intercourse
partners. In intercourse relationships, a greater degree of personal
commitment to the other should result in frequent sexual intercourse.
The motivation to contracept should be greater in such cases for several
reasons. The male partner should be more likely to carry condoms in a
stable, romantic intercourse relationship because he knows intercourse
is more likely to occur frequently, because the bargaining position
of women is greater in this kind of relationship, or because he
perceives he should assume responsibility should pregnancy occur
(Furstenberg, 1976: 51). Furthermore, regardless of the use or efficacy
of contraception, one's attitude toward abortion may be affected by
the nature of the commitment to the intercourse partner. (If a pregnancy
takes place in a relationship characterized by a strong commitment
between partners, such as between engaged or semi-engaged couples, a
rushed marriage may seem a more reasonable alternative than an abortion
(Lee, 1969: 150 : Miller, 1973). Thus, use and efficacy of contracep-
tion may interact with the level of emotional commitment to the

intercourse partner to influence attitudes toward abortion.

In their study of contraceptive practices and attitudes
among unmarried college students, Vincent and Stelling (1973) found
that as the rate of sexual activity decreased, there was an increase

in the use Of unreliable forms of contraception such as the rhythm

25

method and/or no use of contraception whatsoever. Zelnik and Kantner
(1978: 141) have speculated about reasons for this fact:

"Misinformation about the real risk of unprotected

intercourse when the partners are young and sex

occurs seldom.and.episodically; the inappropriate-

ness of long-term methods in the face of episodic

sexual encounters, and embarrassment over Obtaining

coitus-dependent methods like condoms from unsympa—

thetic druggists; differential availability of

methods and services ... or a need to dare the

fates I O O "
Miller (1973) also contended that infrequent sexual encounters may
result in infrequent contraceptive use because some women wish to
deny to themselves the fact that they are sexually active or might
engage in premarital sex. However, these findings suggest that never-
married. women who are not in a stable, one-partner relationship but
who have had intercourse frequently with several partners during the
lifetime should be more likely to employ contraceptive techniques
regularly and efficaciously. In such a context, intercourse would
more likely be an expected event; and since responsibility for parent-
hood would be less easily assumed or assigned, the 'women might be

strongly motivated to contracept.

In summary, one's peers represent significant reference points
against which an individual continuously evaluates his or her perspec-
tives and behavior. It was suggested that the influence Of the peer
group intensifies as an individual progresses from freshman to senior
years. The peer group was hypothesized to influence abortion attitudes
indirectly through a series of intervening factors. Specifically,
one's peers are thought to increase nontraditional sex—role orienta-

tions, sexual permissiveness, and sex knowledge, which three factors

26

would lead to greater sexual intimacy. It also appears reasonable
that frequency of intercourse and number of lifetime intercourse
partners should promote use and efficacy of contraception. Use and
efficacy of contraception should be associated with an awareness of
pregnancy risk, with a wish to avoid.conception, and with an awareness
of abortion as an efficient method of avoiding parenthood if pregnancy
does occur. Through these intermediate factors, peer-group influences

should promote the development of attitudes favorable to abortion.

These relationships, however, are expected to vary according
to certain important sociological factors. One such factor is gender.
Many studies (Reiss, 1967; Mirande, 1968; Maxwell, 1970; Kaats and
Davis, 1970; Lewis and Burr, 1975; Deloampo gt;_a_l_,_, 1976) reported
that males are more sexually permissive, more sexually active,
more knowledgeable about sexual information (Spanier, 1976a), and more
apt to experience coitus at a younger age than are females (Lewis, 1973).
While some studies (Mileti and Barnett, 1972; Singh and Leahy, 1978)
reported a lack of significant differences between males and females
in their attitudes toward abortion, other studies (Blake, 1971, 1977b;
Rossi, 1966; Maxwell, 1970) reported that males were more liberal.
Given these significant differences between males and females regarding
sexual permissiveness, knowledge, behavior, and abortion attitudes,
separate analyses will be carried out for males and.females throughout

the study.

Religious affiliation and religiosity are two other control
variables which were found to affect one's attitudes and behavior

regarding sex, contraception, and.abortion. In the 1965 National

27
Fertility Study, Ryder and Westoff (1971) found that religious affilia-
tion and religiosity were significantly related to contraceptive use
and efficacy, and attitudes toward abortion. Contraceptive use and
efficacy were greater, and abortion attitudes were more favorable among
non-Catholic than among Catholic respondents. Furthermore, across all
religious groups, a greater degree of religiosity was negatively related
to favorable attitudes toward abortion. Similar findings were also
reported by Blake (1971) , Mileti and Barnett (1972) , and Westoff and

Ryder (1977) .

Size of place of residence is a fourth control variable
which will be employed throughout the analyses. Callahan (1970: 297)
reported that urban-rural differences regarding attitudes toward
abortion are almost a universal phenomenon. Urten residents are more
likely to have abortions and to have them more frequently than are
rural residents. Callahan contended that urban life brings about
pressures on a married couple to favor smaller families and, subsequently,
to employ measures, including abortion, to attain this goal. Some
sources of such urban pressures toward smaller families could be: the
larger proportion of married women participating in the labor force,
many of whom work.out of financial necessity; the higher costs of
rearing a large family; and the greater absence of the extended family
which, frequently in rural areas, provides emotional and financial

support for rearing a large number of children.

Finally, the effect of degree of commitment to intercourse
partner will be controlled in examining the interrelationships among

frequency Of intercourse, number of lifetime intercourse relationships,

28

contraceptive use and efficacy, and attitudes toward abortion. It
was suggested above that use and efficacy of contraception as well
as attitudes toward abortion may be affected by level of emotional
commitment to the intercourse partner (Lee, 1969; Miller, 1973;

Furstenberg, 1976).

Following the above theoretical discussion and literature
review, six hypotheses will be tested separately for male and female
respondents. These hypotheses are stated below.

Hypgthesis I. The greater the year in school, then the greater

 

the peer-group orientation, after the effects of religious affiliation,
religiosity, and residence have been controlled.

Hypothesis II. The greater the peer-group orientation, then the
more nontraditional the sex-role ideology' and.the greater the sex
knowledge and.permissiveness, after the effects of religious affiliation,
religiosity, and residence have been controlled.

Hypothesis III. The more nontraditional the sex-role ideology
and the greater the sex knowledge and permissiveness, then the greater'the
probability of nonvirginity, after the effects of religious affiliation,
religiosity, and.residence have been controlled.

Hypothesis IV. The greater the probability of nonvirginity, then
the more favorable the attitudes toward abortion, after the effects of
religious affiliation, religiosity, and residence have been controlled.

Hypothesis V. Among those ever having been in intercourse
relationships, the greater the frequency of intercourse and.number of
lifetime intercourse relationships, then the greater the use and efficacy of

contraception, after the effects of religious affiliation, religiosity,

29

residence, and degree of commitment to intercourse partner have been
controlled.

Hypothesis VI. The greater the use and efficacy of contra-

 

ception, then the more favorable the attitudes toward abortion, after the
effects of religious affiliation, religiosity, residence, and degree

of commitment to intercourse partner have been controlled.

It must be noted that "peer-group orientation" here means
peers in general, not college classmates in particular. The reader is
also reminded that the data presented in this study were collected at
one point in time. That is, causal directions linking variables into
the six associations hypothesized above cannot be strictly inferred.
Therefore, it is necessary to view the findings and conclusions genera-
ted by this study with caution. A discussion of this limitation and

an alternative research design are presented in Chapter Five.

CHAPTER THREE

DESIGN OF THE STUDY

The data on abortion attitudes presented in this dissertation
are drawn from a more extensive study Of factors which influence sexual
behavior, contraceptive use and choice among never-married college
students. The study was sponsored by The National Institute of Child
Health and Human Development and carried out by Dr. David Kallen of
the Department of Human Development, Michigan State University. The
data were secured over a two-month period in the Fall term, 1976, by
middle-aged professional interviewers (all women). Every interviewer
first administered an interview schedule and then handed a self-
administered questionnaire to the respondent to be completed and
returned immediately. The purpose of a self-administered questionnaire
was to minimize sample attrition and to maximize self-disclosure since
several Of the questions were sensitive. Interviewing time varied
between 1%~and 5% hours depending on the respondent's dating and

sexual experiences.

The original random sample consisted of 1094 never-married
undergraduate male and female students who were currently enrolled at
Michigan State University during the Fall term, 1976. The sample was
drawn from current Fall registration records. Single marital status
and.age of less than 26 were the two criteria for selection. Every
respondent was sent a letter introducing the nature and purpose of the
study, indicating that he or she had been randomly selected as an

30

31
informant, and kindly requesting cooperation once he or she was
contacted by an interviewer. Subsequently, an attempt was made to
contact each student by telephone to set a place and a time for the
interview. If a respondent was not located by telephone the first
time, an interviewer kept attempting to make a contact until one was
made. The maximum number of telephone calls made to locate a respon-
dent was 9 while the average number of telephone calls per respondent
was 2.7. The response rate was 80 percent (875 completed interviews).
The remaining 20 percent of the original sample could not be interviewed
for such reasons as: the respondent was very busy, could not be located,
or declined to be interviewed. Only two respondents refused to comp-

lete the interview once it started.

Previous research on sexual behavior, contraceptive use, and
abortion attitudes has demonstrated significant white/black differences.
Blacks were reported to be more permissive, more sexually active (Reiss,
1967), less knowledgeable about sexual and contraceptive information
(Delcampo §§_al;, 1976), less efficacious contraceptors (Westoff and
Ryder, 1977), and less favorable in their attitudes toward abortion
(Ryder and.Westoff, 1971; McCormick, 1975; Westoff and Ryder, 1977)
than were whites. In the present study, race of respondent was deter-
mined by interviewer observation. Since the number of black respon-
dents yielded by the random sample was small (N = 45), the current
analysis was limited to whites. Since the influence of one's peers
upon abortion attitudes was thought to operate partially through
their influence upon the initiation of coitus, those respondents who

had been previously married (N = 4), who had been raped at first

32
intercourse (N = 2), or who had initiated sexual intercourse prior
to college entry (N = 286) were excluded from the present study. The
exclusion of respondents who initiated coitus prior to coming to college
was also thought to reduce the effect of student attrition upon the
conclusions of the study. These respondents were thought to be likely
to drop out of college before finishing the senior year for such
reasons as: lack of commitment to college education and a high probabi-
lity of premarital pregnancy or marriage early in their college years.
Finally, since the experience of pregnancy might change one's attitudes
toward abortion, those respondents who experienced a pregnancy in the
current or the most recent intercourse relationship (N = 3) were
omitted. One additional female respondent was also excluded because
she indicated informally that she had had a tubal ligation. No infor-
mation on homosexuality among the sample respondents was elicited.
(For information on how timing and social context of first intercourse
and how pregnancy history were determined, see Appendix A). As a
result, the effective sample size for the current inquiry became 534.
Means and standard deviations of the study variables are presented

by year in school in Table 3.1 .

MEASURES

The variables in the present investigation were measured in

the following way.
(1) Year in School:

All respondents were undergraduates. This variable has four

levels.

33

 

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1. Freshman
2. Sophomore
3. Junior
4. Senior

(2) Peer-Group Orientation:

Ten indicators were used to measure several aspects of peer-
group influences. These indicators and the close—ended responses
associated with each are presented below.

How many friends would you say you have?

1. A few

2. Several

3. An average number
4. Many

5. A great many

Consider your college friends. How many of them do you think of as
close friends with whom you can discuss a personal problem?

0. None of them
1. One

2. Two

. Three

. Four

. Five

. Six

. Seven or more

\lChUt-FU

About what proportion of your friends are friends with each other?
Would you say . . .

1. None of them

2. Less than half of them
3. About half of them

4. More than half of them
5. All of them

How many of your friends know what you are doing sexually?

0. None of them
1. One

2. Two

. Three

. Four

. Five

. Six

. Seven or more

\lmkn-PU)

39

How Often do you talk with your friends about what you are doing
sexually? Would you say ...

1. Never

2. Seldom

3. Sometimes

4. Fairly often
5. Very often

About what proportion of your friends date? Would you say ...

1. None of them

2. Less than half Of them
3. About half of them

4. More than half of them
5. All of them

About what prOportion of your friends engage in petting? Would you
say 0..

0. Do not know

1. None Of them

2. Less than half of them
. About half of them

. More than half of them
. All of them

UlPkd

About what proportion of your friends have intercourse? Would you
say 0..

0. Do not know

1. None of them

2. Less than half of them
3. About half of them

4. More than half of them
5. All of them

We are also interested in how you have spent your time since the
beginning of Fall term. For each of the activities listed below, tell
me the number of the response that best indicates how involved you have
been in that activity.

Talking or doing things with friends.

1. Not much at all

2. Not too much

3. Average amount

4. Quite a bit

5. A lot

6. Does not apply (missing value)

Talking or doing things with roommates or housemates.

1. Not much at all
2. Not too much
3. Average amount

4. Quite a bit
5. A lot
6. Does not apply (missing value)

A factor analysis using an oblique rotation with Kaiser
normalization (assuming factors are fairly correlated with each other,
i.e., Delta = 0 ) suggested three factors. A factor pattern loading of
.30 or higher was deemed as evidence that a particular item loaded on a

given factor. These factors and their loadings are presented below.

FACTOR I FACTOR II FACTOR III

How many friends you have ... .39820 * .12100 .14518
How many are close friends .. .76615 * .00778 -.06623
How many are friends with

each other ............... .20895 .02670 .07928
How many friends know what

you do sexually .......... .67298 * -.18184 -.14684
How often do you talk about

what you do sexually .37230 * -.21534 .11375
Talking/doing things with

friends .................. .07498 .01015 .8113? *
Talking/doing things with

roommates or housemates .. -.02238 -.05866 .60674 *
How many of your friends

date .01850 -.33707* -.01388
How many of your friends are

engaged in petting -.O5412 -.87188 * .05755
How many of your friends

have intercourse ......... .04114 -.76230 * .03648
Eigenvalue 2.27706 1.28018 .56982
Percent of Variance 55.20 31.00 13.80
Cumulative Percent 55.20 86.20 100.00

Since factor three had an eigenvalue of less than 1.0, it was
decided to use factors one and two as measurements of peer-group orien-
tation. In the present study, these respective factors will be referred
to as "self-disclosure to peers" and "perception of peers' sexual
intimacy". The index of self-disclosure to peers was constructed by
adding responses to the four statistically significant items under

factor one (indicated by an asterisk) resulting in a range of 2 to 24.

41
A low score represented low disclosure while a high score represented
high disclosure of self to peers. Similarly, the index of perception
of peers' sexual intimacy was constructed by adding responses to the
three statistically significant items under factor two and ranged from
1 to 15. A low score represented perception Of a low level while a
high score represented perception of a high level of peers' sexual

intimacy.

(3) Sex-Role Ideology:

Each respondent was asked his or her personal conceptions of
masculinity and femininity. The present analysis, however, will focus
only upon the definition of femininity as a measure of sex-role ideology
because the role of women is thought to be more sensitively related to
contraceptive practices and the abortion issue. A major issue of the
women's movement is the right of women to control their fertility and
their bodies, and to avoid unwanted births through abortion (Westoff
and.Westoff, 1971: 145 — 146). The following two Open—ended questions

were designed to elicit information on sex-role ideology.

We are interested in your present viewpoint on what it means to be
masculine and feminine. At the present time, what do you think it
means to be masculine?

(PROBE: How does a masculine person behave? What kinds of feelings do
they have? Note: Make sure respondent defines nonvernacular terms).

And what do you think it means to be feminine?

(PROBE: How does a feminine person behave? What kinds of feelings do
they have? Note: Make sure respondent defines nonvernacular terms).

Specific and detailed guidelines were set by the research

team to code the Open-ended responses into the following categories:

42

1. Conservative Ideology

2. Moderate Ideology

3. Liberal Ideology

4. Other (nonclassified) Ideology

Coding the open-ended responses into these categories was carried out

by the following procedure. First of all, a random sample of responses
was selected, each of which was coded by every member of the research
team according to the set guidelines. After all resulting misconceptions
were discussed and clarified, ten coders were trained and.given the same
randomly selected responses to be coded once again according to the set
guidelines. The three coders whose classifications of the responses
were most accurate and similar were hired to do the rest of the coding.
Each of the three coders was given the responsibility to code the Open-
ended responses to the total sample. Subsequently, each coded response
was compared among the three coders; if any two classifications were

the same, that category was considered a valid measure of the respon-
dent's sex-role ideology. If, however, each of the coders had.a

different classification, the category of sex-role ideology was referred

to members of the research team for arbitration.

The guidelines set for coding the open—ended responses to the
meaning of femininity are presented below:
1. Conservative Ideology: An ideology of femininity was considered
conservative if a respondent expressed qualities which are traditionally
attributed to appropriate behavior for women. A conservative ideology
Of'femininity suggests qualities such as nonaggressive, emotionally
expressive, affectionate, nurturant, and concerned about interpersonal
relationships. The following is an example of a conservative ideology

of femininity.

43

"Southern belle, coy, frail emotions, behave very delicately, always
nice, flowery" (Respondent # 3159).

2. Moderate Ideology: An ideology of femininity was considered
moderate if a respondent expressed some Of the above traditional
qualities in conjunction with nontraditional qualities. A moderate
ideology of femininity suggets qualities such as athletic and forceful,
physically attractive,and.mannerly. The following is an example of a
moderate ideology Of femininity.

"Secure within herself, be herself. NO rowdiness. She should care
about her appearances. Be neat" (Respondent # 3451).

3. Liberal Ideology: An ideology of femininity was considered liberal
if a respondent expressed qualities which could be classified into one
or a combination of the following categories: rejection of traditional
sex-role stereotypes, denial of differences in behavior between men
and women, and expectation of nontraditional sex-role behavior. A
liberal ideology of femininity suggests qualities such as aggressive,
independent, adventurous, or athletic. The following is an example of
a liberal ideology of femininity.

"I do pot think it is someone who has to stay in the home" (Respondent
# 3267 .

4. Other (nonclassified) Ideology: An ideology of femininity was
classified into the "other" category if it was not clear enough to be
classified into conservative, moderate, or liberal ideology. The
following is an example of the "other" category.

"I hate the word, do not want to answer" (Respondent # 3653).

For the purpose of the present study, however, the "other" category

is considered as missing data.

(4) Sex Knowledge:

The index of sex knowledge was derived from nine items, each
of which examined the respondent on some aspect of reproductive and
contraceptive knowledge. Each item had only one correct response. The
, respondents were requested to circle the response they thought was
correct. The items and responses which followed are presented below.
The correct responses as used in the present study are followed by an
asterisk.

The condom can be used:

0. Once *

1. Twice

2. Three times

3. Until it wears out
4. Don't know

In the rhythm method of birth control the safe period is:

0. Just before menstruation

1. Just after menstruation

2. About 2 weeks after menstruation

3. From just before to just after menstruation *
4. Don't know

Ovulation and menstruation usually occur:

0 . Simultaneously

1. Within 24 to 48 hours of each other
2. Approximately 14 days apart *

3. Approximately 21 days apart

4. Approximately 28 days apart

5. Don't know

If a woman using the birth control pill forgets to take a pill one day
she should:

0. Take two the next day *

1. Immediately stop having intercourse until her next period
2. Take two the next day and stop having intercourse

3. Call her physician immediately

4. Don't know

Foam is most effective when used in conjunction with:

0 . Withdrawal
1. Douche
2. Condoms *

45

3. Diaphragm
4. Rhythm
5. Don't know

. The diaphragm is:

0. Worn by the woman at the entrance to the vagina
1. Placed over the penis by the woman

2. Worn by the woman at the cervix *

3. A small plastic device placed in the uterus

4. Don't know

A woman cannot get pregnant unless she has an orgasm during intercourse:

1. True

2. False *

3. Don't know

A male at birth has all the sperm he will ever need to be fertile:

1. True
2. False *
3. Don't know

Withdrawal works because no sperm are released until the man ejaculates:
1. True *

2. False
3. Don't know

A factor analysis using an Oblique rotation with Kaiser
normalization suggested two factors. A factor pattern loading of .30
or higher was deemed as evidence that a particular item loaded on a

given factor. These factors and their loadings are presented below.

FACTOR I FACTOR II

Thecondomcanbeused.................... .31458* .14685
In the rhythm method of birth control

the safe period is ..................... .31169 * -.14933
Ovulation and.menstruation usually occur .. .58260 * -.42536
If a woman using the birth control pill

forgets to take a pill one day ........ .34959 * -.OO865
Foam is most effective when used with ..... .45164 * .06802
The diaphragm is .......................... .50900 * .08617
A woman cannot get pregnant unless she has

an orgasm during intercourse ........... .45462 * -.02892
A male at birth has all the sperm he

will ever need to be fertile ........... .06110 .22375

Withdrawal works because no sperm are re-
leased until the man ejaculates ........ .58131 * .22706

46

Eigenvalue 1.66482 .33731
Percent of Variance 83.20 16.80
Cumulative Percent 83.20 100.00

Since factor two had an eigenvalue of less than 1.0, it was
decided to use factor one as a measurement of sex knowledge. The index
of sex knowledge was constructed by counting the number of correct
responses given by each respondent on the eight items (followed by an
asterisk) which significantly loaded on factor one. This index thus
ranged from 0 to 8. A low score represented low sex knowledge while

a high score represented high sex knowledge.

(5) Sexual Permissiveness:

The sexual permissiveness scale measures attitudes of the
respondents regarding premarital sexual involvement for never-married
males and.females. The scale was based.on eight items, each of which
measured the attitudinal position of each respondent regarding an
intimate behavior which was most acceptable between a male and.a female
in four encounters: casual acquaintance, friendship, affection, and
love. The eight items were stated as follows:

What is the most intimate behavior you feel is acceptable for a male
to engage in with a female he has just met or knows only casually?

What is the most intimate behavior you feel is acceptable for a male
to engage in with a friend of the opposit sex?

What is the most intimate behavior you feel is acceptable for a male
to engage in with someone he has affection for but does not love?

What is the most intimate behavior you feel is acceptable for a male
to engage in with someone he loves?

What is the most intimate behavior you feel is acceptable for a female
to engage in with a male she has just met or knows only casually?

47

What is the most intimate behavior you feel is acceptable for a female
to engage in with a friend of the opposit sex?

What is the most intimate behavior you feel is acceptable for a female
to engage in with someone she has affection for but does not love?

What is the most intimate behavior you feel is.acceptable for a female
to engage in with someone she loves?

Each of the above items was followed by five degrees of sexual intimacy:
0. No physical relationship
1. Kissing
2. Light petting (above waist)
3. Heavy petting (below waist)
4. Intercourse

Because the large majority of both male and female respondents
indicated that sexual intercourse was an acceptable behavior between a
male and.a female in a love relationship, a decision was made to elimi-
nate these two items from the construction of the measure of sexual

permissiveness. The mean scores of items 4 and 8 were, for males: 3.64

and.3.63; for females: 3.59 and 3.56, respectively.

When dichotomized into low and.high permissiveness, the
remaining six items were found to form a Guttman scale (coefficient of
reproducibility, .9364 and .9494; coefficient of scalability, .8267 and
.8205; minimum marginal reproducibility, .6328 and .7179 for male and
female respondents, respectively). However, the cutting points for
these items differed for male and female respondents, depending on the
marginal distribution of each item. An attempt was made not to create
extreme marginals, i.e., greater than 80 or less than 20 percent, a
practice which is recommended in the construction of Guttman scales
(Dotson and Summers, 1970). The cutting points for these items for

male and female respondents are presented below.

MALES FEMALES
Low High Low High
Male/casual acquaintance 0-2 3-4 0-1 2-4
Male/friend O-2 3-4 0—1 2.4
Male/affection 0-2 3-4 0-1 2-4
Female/casual acquaintance 0-2 3-4 0-1 2-4
Female/friend 0-2 3—4 0-1 2-4
Female/affection 0-2 3-4 0-1 244

The above reported coefficients of reproducibility and
scalability indicate that the suggested Guttman permissiveness scale
is both unidimentional and cumulative. The coefficient of reproducibi-
lity is generally set at a minimum of .90 while the coefficient of
scalability is set at a minimum of .60 as requisites for considering
the scale cumulative, unidimentional, and internally consistent (Dotson
and.Summers, 1970: 207 - 208). An individual's scale score, found by
summing the number of "high" responses to the six items, would, therefore,
vary from 0 to 6, with 0 being the least and 6 being the most sexually
permissive attitude. This scale score denotes not only the number of
items "passed" but which items were "passed". That is, if a respondent
scored high on the sixth item, in more than 90 percent of the instances,
he or she would also have scored high on the preceding five items.
Therefore, the several scale scores do not only indicate the number
of items but also which items were passed by each respondent. Two
slightly different orders of items were found to form the sexual per—
missiveness scale for males and females. These are sequenced below

from high to low difficulty of acceptance.

MALES FEMALES
Female/casual acquaintance Female/casual acquaintance
Male/casual acquaintance Male/casual acquaintance

Female/friend Female/friend

49

Male/friend Male/friend
Female/affection Male/affection
Male/affection Female/affection

Thus, among both males and females, high sexual permissiveness between
a female and her male acquaintance was the most difficult to accept.
High sexual permissiveness between a male and someone he has affection
for was easiest for male respondents to accept; high sexual permissive-
ness between a female and.someone she has affection for was easiest

for females to accept.

InfOrmation on the following six variables (nonvirginity,
frequency of intercourse, number of lifetime intercourse relationships,
contraceptive use, contraceptive efficacy, and level of commitment to
intercourse partner) was elicited through the use of "Time-Line Chart"

(see Appendix A fOr details).

(6) Nonvirginity:

In the present study, the variable is the sexual status of
a respondent at the time of the interview. Its attributes are:

0. Virgin status
1. Nonvirgin status

(7) Frequency of Intercourse:

This variable was measured with reference to the current or
the most recent partner among respondents who have ever been in inter-
course relationships. If a respondent was simultaneously involved in
more than one intercourse relationship, the longest relationship was

selected for the analysis.

50

(8) Number of Lifetime Intercourse Relationships:

This variable is the total number of partners with whom

intercourse took place during the lifetime of the respondent.

(9) Contraceptive Use:

Contraceptive use was measured with reference to the current
or the most recent intercourse relationship. If a respondent was
currently in an intercourse relationship with several partners, the
longest relationship was used to examine contraceptive behavior. Con-
traceptive use was broken down by percent of time each contraceptive
method was used compared to other contraceptive methods employed in a
relationship. If multiple contraceptive methods were employed simul-
taneously one hundred percent of the time, the most effective method
was chosen as the method used in that relationship. Contraceptive use
is, therefore, categorized into three levels:

1. Contraceptive methods were never used

2. Contraceptive methods were used less than 100 percent of the time
3. Contraceptive methods were used 100 percent of the time

(10) Contraceptive Efficacy:

The different contraceptive methods and the percent of time
each was used in a relationship were categorized into four categories
from least effective to most effective:

1. NO contraception
2 . Rhythm, withdrawal

3. Diaphragm, jelly, condom, condom and foam
4. Pill, IUD

51

To construct the index of contraceptive efficacy, a weighted
average of efficacy was calculated. Since one category was assumed to
be more effective than others, each was weighted differently. This
was done by multiplying the first category by 0, the second by 1, the
third by 2, and the fourth by 3. Then, the results were added and the
sum was divided by 4. To illustrate, suppose that for one respondent,
methods of contraceptive use are broken down as in the following: no
contraception, 25 percent; condom and foam, 25 percent; and IUD, 50
percent. To calculate contraceptive efficacy for this respondent, the

following mathematical procedure takes place:

No contraception 25 x 0 = 0
Condom and foam 25 x 2 = 50
IUD EOXB= 150

200-3-4=50
Therefore, the number 50 is an index of contraceptive efficacy for this
respondent in a particular relationship. The above mathematical pro-
cedure results in an index with a range of 0 to 75. A low score repre-
sents low efficacy while a high score represents high efficacy of

contraception.

(11) Level of Commitment to Intercourse Partner:

Five levels of commitment to the current or the most recent
intercourse partner were identified. These were: casual acquaintance,
friendship, affection, love with no plans to marry, and love with plans
to marry. For the purpose of the present analysis, these levels of
commitment were collapsed into:

0. No love relationship (the first three levels)
1. Love relationship (the last two levels)

52

(12) Residence:

Data on size of the community in which the respondents lived
during their last two years of high school were secured through the

following question.

How large was the community your family lived in during your last two
years in high school?

0. Rural area

1. Village or town in a rural area (less than 2,500 population)
2. Village or town in a rural area (2,500 to 50,000 population)
3. Small city (50,000 to 250,000 population)

4. Suburb of small city

5. Medium city (250,000 to 1,000,000 population)

6. Suburb of medium city

7. Large city (1,000,000 or more)

8. Suburb of large city

(13) Religious Affiliation:

The following question was used in order to Obtain data on

the respondents' religious affiliation.

What is your present religious preference? (Get specific affiliation).

1. Protestant (Denomination: )
2. Roman Catholic

. Jewish (Reformed, Conservative, or Orthodox)

. Hindu, Moslem, or Buddist

. Personal

. Agnostic
Atheist

. Other (Specify)

CD\}O\U\-F'U

 

Upon inspection Of the frequency count, the number of respon-
dents who indicated no religious preference, agnostic, atheist, or
personal religion was 35 and 27 percent for male and female respondents,
respectively. Subsequently, it was decided to classify respondents

according to the following categories of religious affiliation:

53

0. No religion
1. Non-Catholic religion
2. Catholic religion

(10) Religiosity:

 

Measurement of religiosity was assessed through the following

question.

How religions are you now? Would you say . . .

1. Not at all religious
2. Not so religious

3. Religious

4. Fairly religious

5. Very religious

(15) Abortion Attitudes:

Eight items were included in the questionnaire to measure
abortion attitudes. These items were originally part of fifteen items
used by Mirande and Hammer (1970) in interviewing never-married female
undergraduate students about their attitudes toward abortion. These
items were slightly modified in the present study in order to make
them applicable to both males and females. Each of the items was
followed by a six-point scale ranging from "strongly agree" to

"strongly disagree". These items are presented below.

H
c...

is all right for a woman to have an abortion:

If she felt that she could not emotionally cope with being pregnant
If she did not want to marry the person who got her pregnant

If she was not ready to get pregnant

If she did not want her parents to find out that she was pregnant
If she felt being pregnant would.make it difficult for her to
continue her education

If the person who got her pregnant would not marry her

If she did not want her friends to find out that she was pregnant

. If she felt that she would be left out of social activities

CDVCh \n'l-‘UNH

54

When responses to each item were dichotomized ("agree,"
"disagree"), they formed a Guttman scale (Coefficient of reproducibility,
.9187 and .9320; coefficient of scalability, .7932 and .8256: minimum
marginal reproducibility, .6070 and .6100 for male and female respon-
dents, respectively). Each individual's scale score was constructed
by counting the number of "agree" responses. This resulted in a scale
with a range of O to 8, with 0 being the most conservative and 8 being
the most liberal attitude toward abortion. Each of the scores on the
Guttman abortion scale represents a response pattern. TWO slightly
different orders of items were found to form the abortion scale for
males and females. The order of items in terms of most difficult to
least difficult to accept were, for males, 8, 7, 4, 5, 6, 3, 2, 1: for

females, 8, 7, 4, 6, 5, 3, 2, 1.

STATISTICAL PROCEDURES

Since testing each of the five hypotheses of this study
involves the evaluation of the statistical significance of a relation-
ship between a dependent variable, Y, and a set of independent (control
and predictor) variables, Xi, multiple regression was deemed as the
appropriate statistical method for this study. Multiple regression
permits a decomposition of variance in Y scores into that component
which is explained by the control and the predictor variables and that
component which is unexplained. The decomposition of the total explained
variance into that part contributed by a specific independent variable
can be accomplished in two ways; namely, the standard regression method

and the hierarchical method.

55
The standard regression method involves the evaluation of

the overall dependence of Y on a set of independent variables, Xi'

Indicators of this dependence are expressed in terms of semipartial
regression coefficients associated with each of the independent
variables. If there are one dependent variable (Y) and two independent
variables (X1 and.X2) in a regression equation, the semipartial corre-

lation between Y and.X1 is calculated by taking out the effect of X2

from X1 and correlating the resulting residual (X1 - £1) with Y. The
square of this semipartial correlation coefficient is interpreted as

the increment in the explained variance of Y due to the addition of X1

to the regression equation already containing X The statistical

2.
significance of this increment is tested by an F ratio which is

calculated according to the following equation:

 

R2 (1.2)/k
FSR = I 2 where,
32y(1.2) = proportion of variance in Y explained by variable x1,
after controlling for the effects of X2,
Rzy 1 2 k = the proportion of variance explained by all
0 ’ 000
independent variables,
k = number of independent variables in the equation, and
N = the sample size.

For the general case, the increment to the explained variance in Y
attributable to Xi where i > 2 can be tested by:

R2y(i.1,2...(i-1)...k)/k

FSR =

 

2

(1 ' R 1,2...1...k)/(N ‘ k ‘ 1)

56
It is evident that the calculations of these increments to the explained
variance in Y treat each independent variable Xi as if it were entered

into the regression equation after all other independent variables.

The hierarchical regression method is an alternative approach
to the decomposition of the explained variance in Y scores. Employing
this approach, the dependence of Y on a set of independent variables,
Xi’ is also expressed in terms of semipartial regression coefficients
associated with each of the independent variables. However, the analysis,
interpretations, and evaluation of the significance of these semipartial
correlation coefficients are slightly different. While in the standard
regression method each of the independent variables is treated as if
it were entered last into the equation, in the hierarchical approach
each of the independent variables is entered into the regression
equation according to a specified inclusion order predetermined by the
researcher. In this respect, a researcher can evaluate the net incre-
mental contribution of one or more independent variables, Xi, to the
total explained variance in Y over and.above that portion of variance
explained by all other independent variables already contained in the_
regression equation in a previous step(s). The statistical significance

of this contribution is calculated according to the following equation:

2 2

(R -R )/(k -k)
F = Y-1-2---Kir y.1.2...k27 1 2 where,

HR (1 ' R2y.1.2...k1)/(N " k1 ‘ 1)

Rzy 1 2 k = the proportion of sum of squares accounted for by
O O .0. 1
both the control and predictor variables,
R2y 1 2 k = the prOportion of sum of squares accounted for by the
. 0.. 2

control variables,

57

k1 = the total number of control and predictor variables,
k2 = the number of control variables,
N = the sample size.

In the present study, the hierarchical method was deemed as
more apprOpriate than the standard regression method because each of
the hypotheses of this study examines the effect of a predictor variable
on a respective dependent variable after the effects of several control
variables have been taken out of a predictor variable(s). This analysis
will, therefore, involve two separate levels of inclusion. In the first
level, the control variables will be introduced into the regression
equation in order to let them account for their portion of variance in
Y scores. In the second level, the predictor variables will be added
to the regression model in order to determine their incremental cont-
ribution to the total explained variance, over and above that which is
explained by the control variables. Furthermore, since there is no
hypothesized causal order within a given inclusion level to determine
the orderly inclusion among either the control or the predictor variables,
the variables in an inclusion level will be added to the regression

model in stepwise fashion.

The following assumptions which underlie the general statis-
tical technique of multiple regression analysis are necessary for the
validity of tests of statistical significance and for meaningful results
(see Kerlinger and.Pedhazur, 1973: 47 - 48; Kim and.Kohout, 1975: 341).

1. The dependent variable, Y, and independent variables, X , are

i
interval-scaled.

2. The sample is randomly selected.

58

3. The scores of a dependent variable, Y, are normally distributed at

each value of the independent variables, X and, therefore, have

i’
equal variances.

4. The relationship between a dependent variable, Y, and the independent
variables, X1, is both linear and additive.

5. The error terms are independent of each other.

That the F ratio is a robust statistic means that it remains stable

when the assumptions underlying multiple regression are relaxed (Kerlin-

ger and.Pedhazur, 1973: 47 - 48). A significance level of p.< .05 was

chosen to reject the null hypothesis.

STRUCTURAL EQUATIONS

Using the hierarchical multiple regression as the statistical
method for this study, the following structural equations represent the

six research hypotheses.

3
H 3 y = a +GEb x + b x + e
1 1 i=11 i 4 4
3
Y = a +32b x + b x + e where,
2 1:11 i 4 4
y1 = selfwdisclosure to peers,

y2 = perception of peers' sexual intimacy,

a = the intercept,

3

12bixi = three control variables (religious affiliation,
i=1

religiosity, and residence),

bux4 = year in school, and

e the error term;

59

3 5
y = a + Eb x + Eb x + e
1 1:11 i 1&1 i
3 5
y = a + Eb x + Eb x + e
2 1:11 i i=41 i
3 5 .
y =a+Eb.x '1'be + e where,
y1 = the sex-role ideology measure,
y2 = the sexual permissiveness measure,
y3 = the sex knowledge measmre,
the first summation is as for Hypothesis 1, and
5
Zbixi = the two measures of peer-group orientation:
i=4
3 6
y=a+be i'Z‘Dx +e where,
i=11 1 1:41 1
y = probability of nonvirginity,

the first summation is as for Hypothesis 1, and
6

Eb x = the sex-role ideology, the sexual permissiveness, and

i=4jL i

the sex knowledge measures:

3
y=a+be+bx+e where,
1glii 44

y = the abortion attitudes measure,

the first summation is as for Hypothesis 1, and

b4x4 . = probability of nonvirginity;

4 6
y =a+be +be +e
1 1:111 i=511
4 6
y = a + Eb x +Eb.x. + e where,
2 1:111 1:511

60

y1 = the measure of contraceptive use,
y2 = the measure of contraceptive efficacy,
1,
IEbixi = four control variables (religious affiliation, religio-
i=1 .
sity, residence, and commitment to intercourse partner).
6
Ebixi = measures of number of intercourse partners and.frequen—
1:
cy of intercourse with the current or the most recent
partner:
4 6
= + + +
y a iibixi 1.31fo e where ,
y = the abortion attitudes measure,
the first summation is as for Hypothesis 5, and
6
IEbixi = the measures of contraceptive use and contraceptive
i=5

efficacy.

As mentioned in Chapter Two, these six research hypotheses

are tested separately for male and female respondents. The findings

of the analyses are presented in the following chapter.

CHAPTER FOUR

PRESENTATION OF FINDINGS

The central thesis of this study was that as a result of college
attendance, a chain of events which influence abortion attitudes occurs.
The peer group was regarded as an important link between college atten-
dance and the development of attitudes toward abortion. It was hypothe-
sized that as year in school increases, one's orientation toward peers
also increases. The peer group was thought to be more liberal, as well
as to become more powerful than the family of orientation, in shaping
one's attitudes toward abortion. More nontraditional sex-role ideology,
greater sex knowledge, and greater sexual permissiveness were thought
to be three consequences of greater peer-group orientation that would
encourage sexual intercourse. Subsequently, a greater number of life—
time intercourse partners and a greater frequency of intercourse with
the current or the most recent intercourse partner were thought to
increase contraceptive use and efficacy. Greater and more efficacious
use of contraception was regarded to be associated with an awareness
of pregnancy risk, with a desire to avoid conception, and with an
awareness of abortion as an alternative method of avoiding parenthood
should contraception fail. Therefore, greater and more efficacious
use of contraception should be associated with more liberal attitudes

toward abortion. This series of events is tested below.

61

62

Year in School and.Peer-Group Orientation

It was hypothesized that as year in school increases, one's
orientation toward peers also increases, net of the effects of religious
affiliation, religiosity, and residence. In this study, two dimensions
of peer-group orientation have been identified. The first dimension
measured the degree of the respondent's self disclosure to peers while
the second dimension measured the respondent's perception of the degree

of the peers' involvement in sexual activities.

Tables 4.1 and.4.2 present the zero-order correlation coeffi-
cients for variables in Hypotheses I through IV. For both male and
female respondents, year in school was positively and significantly
related to the two measures of peer-group orientation; to the three
hypothesized consequencies of greater peer-group orientation: sexual
permissiveness, sex knowledge, and sex-role ideology; to the probability
of nonvirginity; and (except for female respondents) to abortion
attitudes. These relationships suggested that college attendance might
be causally related to the liberalization of abortion attitudes.
Furthermore, it appeared that the peer grOUp, by providing role models
encouraging sexual intercourse, might be an important link in the
causal chain but that the sequence of events was probably different

for males and females.

In order to examine the relationship between year in school
and the two dimensions of peer-group orientation within a multivariate
framework, two multiple regression equations, each with two levels of
inclusion were, therefore, administered. Since the effects of religious

affiliation, religiosity, and residence on one's choice of peers were

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63

 

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65
thought to precede the effect of year in school, religious affiliation,
religiosity, and residence were introduced as a first inclusion level
while year in school was introduced as a second level of inclusion in

the regression model.

The overall goodness-of—fit test for the total variance in
self-disclosure to peers explained by the independent variables yielded
statistically significant F ratios of 4.83 and.5.54 for male and female
respondents, respectively (Table 4.3). Although the F ratios were
statistically significant at the .01 level, they were not large and
the whole model did not explain more than approximately eight percent

of the total variance in y for either male or female respondents.

Neither of the control variables nor their cumulative effect
was significantly related to one's self-disclosure to peers. However,
as was expected, after the effects of religious affiliation, religiosity,
and residence had been removed from the measure of self-disclosure,
year in school had a statistically significant incremental contribution
to the explained variance in y. The signs of the zero-order correlation
coefficients and the standardized beta coefficients were positive, as
was hypothesized. The hierarchical F ratios for year in school were
14.75 and 18.99 for male and female respondents, respectively, and

were significant at the .01 level.

The relationship between year in school and perception of
peers' sexual involvement is presented in Table 4.4. The overall
goodness-of-fit test for the total variance in y explained by the

full regression model yielded statistically significant F ratios for

66

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67

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Hooanononoar r.a canoe

68

male (F = 10.34: p‘<.01) and female (F = 14.57; p‘<.01) respondents.
The regression model explained approximately 16 percent and 18 percent

of the variance in y for males and.females, respectively.

The independent and the cumulative effects of the control
variables were statistically significant only for female respondents
(Table 4.4). For females, greater urbanism of the community in which
the last two high-school years were spent was positively related
(Beta = .16), religiosity was negatively related (Beta = -.17), while
religious affiliation was not significantly related to a perception of
peers' sexual intimacy. As was expected, after the effects of religious
affiliation, religiosity, and residence had been removed from y, year
in school added a significant increment to the explained variance for
both male (FHR = 33.02: p‘<.01) and.female (FHR = 39.33: p‘<.01) respon-
dents. The signs of the standardized beta coefficients were in the

expected direction: for males, Beta = .36: for females, Beta = .36.

In conclusion, the above analyses indicated that, for both
male and female respondents, year in school was positively and signifi—
cantly related to peer—group orientation, net of the effects of religious
affiliation, religiosity, and.residence. This finding, however, must be
viewed with caution. It is not possible to conclude that peer-group
orientation is causally related to year in school from the present
cross-sectional data. An alternative hypothesis may suggest that
students who were less integrated into the peer-group subculture might
have been less likely to remain in college through the senior year.
Therefore, the positive and statistically significant relationship

between year in school and peer-group orientation might be functionally

69

related to the attrition of students who were not well integrated

into the peer-group subculture. Since the effect of selective attrition
cannot be assessed in this cross-sectional study, this problem must be
examined in future research. This issue will be discussed more fully

in Chapter Five.

Peer-Group Orientation, Sex-Role Ideology, Sex
Knowledge, and Sexual Permissiveness

Peer-group orientation was thought to be an important link
between length of college attendance and permissive abortion attitudes.
It was hypothesized that as one becomes more oriented toward peers over
the four college years, he or she tends to develop a nontraditional
sex-role ideology, attain a greater sex knowledge, and express more
permissive sexual attitudes. In order to test these hypothesized
relationships, three separate multiple regression equations were adminis-
tered, each of which considered one of the hypothesized consequences of
greater peer-group orientation as a dependent variable. Since the
effects of religious affiliation, religiosity, and.residence were thought
to occur prior to the effects of peer-group orientation, the former three
variables were the first inclusion level; and the two measures of peer-
group orientation, the second inclusion level in each regression

equation.

As was not expected, the overall goodness-of—fit test for the
total variance in sex-role ideology explained by the control and the
predictor variables did not yield a statistically significant F ratio
for either male or female respondents (Table 4.5). Furthermore, with

one exception, none of the control or predictor variables or their

7O

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71
cumulative net effects were significantly related to sex-role ideology.
For male respondents, after the effects of religious affiliation,
religiosity, and residence had been removed from sex-role ideology,
the perception of peers' sexual intimacy contributed a statistically
significant increment to the explained variance in y. The sign of the
standardized beta coefficient was in the expected direction (Beta = .14).
That is, as male college students perceived a greater degree of sexual
intimacy among their peers, they were likely to express a more non-
traditional sex-role ideology. This finding should, however, be
interpreted with caution since the total variance in sex—role ideology

explained by the regression model was quite small (4 percent).

A greater knowledge of sex was thought to be a second
consequence of a greater peer-group orientation. The analyses add-
ressing this hypothesized.relationship are found in Table 4.6. The
overall goodness—of-fit test for the total variance in sex knowledge
explained by the full regression model yielded statistically significant
F ratios of 5.62 (p<<.01) for male and 10.86 (p-<.01) for female respon-
dents. Of the control variables, only religiosity was significantly
related to sex knowledge and, as would be expected, the signs of the
standardized beta coefficients were negative for both males (Beta = -.13)
and females (Beta = -.13). However, taken together, the control
variables explained a statistically significant portion of the variance

in sex knowledge only for female (FHR = 3.55: p<:.01) respondents.

After the effects of religious affiliation, religiosity, and
residence had been removed from sex knowledge, the cumulative net

effects of the two dimensions of peer-group orientation added a

72

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73

statistically significant increment to the explained variance in y for
both male (FHR = 10.10; p <.01) and female (FHR = 21.02; p <.01)
respondents. After the effects of the control variables had been taken
into account, the two measures of peer-group influence explained an
additional 8.4 percent of the variance in sex knowledge for males but
13.5 percent for females. Moreover, the beta coefficients showed that
the effects of perceiving the sexual intimacy of peers and of disclosing
oneself to them on gains in knowledge of sex were stronger for females
(b = .18 and .06, respectively) than for males (b = .14 and .04, respec-
tively). This statement is particularly true for the self-disclosure
dimension, which did not attain statistical significance among the

males (FHR = 2.07). Thus, it appeared that the peer group provided
more sex education for females than for males and that this function

was partially facilitated by the women's willingness for self-disclosure.

Greater sexual permissiveness was thought to be a third
consequence of greater peer-group orientation. The data addressing
this hypothesis are presented in Table 4.7. The overall goodness-of-fit
test for the variance in sexual permissiveness explained by the full
regression model yielded statistically significant F ratios of 14.70
(p< .01) and 6.88 (p <.01) for male and female respondents, respectively.
Fbr male respondents, both religious affiliation and religiosity were
significantly related.(FSR = 8.99 and 8.40: p-<.01, respectively),
while for female respondents, only religiosity was significantly
related (FSR = 18.23; p <.01) to sexual permissiveness. The direction
of the relationship was negative as would be expected. These relation-
ships indicate that Catholic males, and more religious male and female

respondents were less permissive in their attitudes toward premarital

74

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75

sex than were non-Catholic males, and less religious male and female
respondents, respectively. For male respondents, religious affiliation
and religiosity had equal beta coefficients (Beta = -.19) while for females,
religiosity had the largest beta coefficient (Beta = -.28) of any predictor
variable. Lack of statistical significance of the effect of religious
affiliation on sexual permissiveness for female respondents, may be
explained by the greater intercorrelation between religious affiliation
and religiosity among females than among males (r = .45 and .37, respec-
tively) (Tables 4.1 and 4.2). Thus, for females, the relative importance
of the effect of religious affiliation on sexual permissiveness became
smaller in magnitude after religiosity had been statistically controlled.
Residence did not have a statistically significant effect on sexual

permissiveness for either male or female respondents.

After the cumulative net effects of the control variables
had been removed from sexual permissiveness, the cumulative net effects
of the two dimensions of peer-group orientation yielded statistically
significant F ratios of 16.78 (p<<.01) for males and 5.72 (p-<.01) for
females. While for both men and women, the perception of peers' sexual
intimacy was more important in developing sexually permissive attitudes
than was one's self-disclosure to one's peers, the recognition of peers'
sexual conduct exerted a stronger influence on males' than on females'
sexual permissiveness (b = .21 and .11, respectively). This process
was furthered by self-disclosure among males (b = .07; P< .05) but
not among females (b = .01). Therefore, it appeared that interaction
with the peer group was more influential among males than among females

in the development of sexually permissive attitudes.

76

In conclusion, the above analyses indicated that the net
effect of at least one measure of peer-group orientation was signifi-
cantly related to sex-role ideology for male respondents only, but
was significantly related to sex knowledge and sexual permissiveness
for both males and females. That is, a greater peer-group orientation
contributed to greater sex knowledge and greater sexual permissiveness,
net of the effects of religious affiliation, religiosity, and residence.

These findings partially supported Hypothesis II.

Sex-Role Ideology, Sex Knowledge, Sexual Permissiveness
and.Nonvirginity

In Chapter Two, research findings were cited which indicated
that sex-role ideology, sex knowledge, and sexual permissiveness were
associated with sexual intercourse. Therefore, it was hypothesized
that a more nontraditional sex—role ideology, a greater sex knowledge,
and a greater sexual permissiveness would be associated with a greater
probability of nonvirginity. The pertinent data analyses addressing

this hypothesized relationship are presented in Table 4.8.

The overall goodness-of-fit test for the total variance in
nonvirginity explained by the full regression model yielded statistically
significant F ratios for both male (F = 8.73: p<:.01) and female
(F = 18.84: p<:.01) respondents. Although the zero—order correlation
coefficients between religiosity and nonvirginity were significant at
the .01 level for both males (r = -.17) and females (r = -.20), the
original relationship became nonsignificant in a multivariate framework.
Therefore, it appeared that the relationship between religiosity and

nonvirginity was probably spurious and was perhaps a function of sex

77

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78
knowledge and permissiveness. While the zero-order correlation
coefficient between residence and nonvirginity (r = .17) was statisti-
cally significant, it remained significant (Beta = .13) in a multivariate
framework for female respondents only. This finding suggested that
female respondents who came from larger residential areas were more
likely to be nonvirgins than females who came from smaller residential
areas. Considered jointly, the control variables contributed a
significant portion to the explained.variance in nonvirginity for both

male (FHR = 3.7#; p,<.05) and female (FHR = 7.3h; p <.01) respondents.

Of the test variables,'the net effects of sex knowledge and
sexual permissiveness were significantly related while the net effect
of sex-role ideology was not significantly related to nonvirginity
for male and female respondents. That is, as respondents attained a
greater sex knowledge from peers and.developed.more permissive attitudes
about sex, the more likely they became to begin sexual intercourse.
Therefore, it seems plausible to contend that in addition to trans-
mitting clinical knowledge about sex, the peer group is also likely
to convey an orientation which encourages sexual behavior both explicitly,
through sexual permissiveness (Mirande, 1968: Teevan, 1972: and
Schulz gt_§l;, 1977). and implicitly, through sex knowledge (Lewis,
1973; Spanier, 1976a, 1977). Although sex knowledge was a better
predictor of nonvirginity than was sexual permissiveness for both males
and females, the effect of sex knowledge was greater for females (b = .11)
than it was for males (b = .07), while the effect of sexual permissiveness
was greater for males (b = .05) than it was for females (b = .03).
While the full regression model yielded F ratios significant at the

.01 level for both males (F = 8.73) and females (F = 18.84), the model

79
explained a greater percentage of the variance in nonvirginity for
females (31 percent) than for males (20 percent). These findings,
therefore, partially support Hypothesis III. It is important to
remember, however, that in cross-sectional data, it is impossible to
examine directly the temporal ordering of increases in sex knowledge,
sexual permissiveness, and nonvirginity. This issue will be discussed

in the concluding chapter.

Nonvirginity and Attitudes Toward Abortion

It was proposed in Chapter Two that premarital intercourse
would be related to attitudes toward abortion. Premarital intercourse
was operationalized by the nonvirginity of the respondent. For the
hypothesized relationship to hold, it would then be necessary for
those who have ever engaged in premarital intercourse to perceive the
possibility of a conception, to define the conception as undesired,
and to recognize abortion as the ultimate means of averting unwanted
parenthood. This approach further assumes that the hypothesized
developmental sequence is nonregressive, i.e., that it depends not
upon the existence of an.intercourse relationship at the present time
but upon the occurrence of such a relationship at all. As such, the
subjectively experienced risk of unwanted parenthood was thought to

have a lasting effect upon one's attitudes toward abortion.

To examine the hypothesis that premarital intercourse would be
causally related to abortion attitudes, these attitudes were regressed
upon a measure of premarital intercourse history (nonvirginity). Since

religious affiliation, religiosity, and residence were thought to exert

8O

earlier effects upon abortion attitudes, these three variables became

the first inclusion level and, nonvirginity, the second inclusion

level in the regression equation. Greater religiosity was associated
with more unfavorable abortion attitudes for both male (Beta = -.21)

and female (Beta = -.28) respondents (Table 4.9). Furthermore, religious
affiliation had a statistically significant negative effect on abortion
attitudes for male respondents only (FSR = 8.36; p‘<.01). Lack of a
statistically significant effect of religious affiliation on abortion
attitudes for female respondents may be explained by the greater
intercorrelation between religious affiliation and religiosity for
females (r = .45) than for males (r = .37). The cumulative effects of
the three control variables explained a statistically significant
portion of the variance in abortion attitudes (FHR = 12.68 and 12.63

for males and females, respectively; p‘:.01). As hypothesized, non-
virgins had more favorable attitudes toward abortion than did virgins
(Beta = .25 and .24 for males and females, respectively). The regression
model explained variance in abortion attitudes slightly better for

males (21.1 percent) than for females (18.1 percent). Therefore,

Hypothesis IV was supported.

Frequency of Intercourse, Number of Lifetime Intercourse
Partners, and Contraceptive Use and Efficacy
Three relational mechanisms were hypothesized to link a
history of premarital intercourse to more favorable attitudes toward
abortion. Since not everyone ever engaged in sexual intercourse
subjectively defines oneself as fecund (Luker, 1977). the relationship

between premarital intercourse and a positive evaluation of abortion

81

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82

was thought to develop only if (1) there had ever been a recognition
of a risk of conception, (2) the conception was labelled as unwanted,
and (3) abortion was seen as a way of terminating an undesired

pregnancy.

Unfortunately, the data chosen for this dissertation did not
afford measures of the respondent's subjectively perceived fecundity.
As such, it was necessary to develop a surrogate measure of this
phenomenon. Therefore, it was reasoned that among those with a pre-
marital sexual history, the frequency of sexual intercourse and the
number of lifetime intercourse relationships would promote a conscious
concern with conceptive risk, which would lead not only to contraception
among the never-married but also to the most efficacious means. This
sequence of events was thought to be more likely among urbanites,
non-Catholics, the less religious, and those for whom the context of
intercourse was not love. As such, the assumption of contraception,
especially the more efficacious techniques, was thought to be an

indicator of the awareness of conceptive risk.

Not only an awareness of conceptive risk but also a wish to
minimize that risk and a definition of abortion as an effective means
to avert unwanted parenthood were thought to condition the development
of favorable abortion attitudes among the never-married who had a
history of premarital sex. Lacking a direct measure of the wantedness
of an imminent conception, it was reasoned that such a pregnancy would
be more likely to he wanted by those whose current or most recent
intercourse relationship occurred within a context of love. Thus, the

level of commitment to the current or the most recent intercourse partner

83
became the surrogate measure of the "wantedness” of a premarital
conception; It was further theorized that a subjective perception
of abortion as an efficient means of ending an unwanted conception
would be most common among urbanites, non-Catholics, and the least
religious. It was to examine these hypothesized relational mechanisms
linking premarital sexual history to positive attitudes about abortion

that the final two hypotheses were framed.

It was stated in Hypothesis V that number of lifetime inter-
course partners and frequency of intercourse with the current or the
most recent partner should promote a greater and a more efficacious
use of contraception. Subsequently, Hypothesis VI stated that a
positive association was expected between greater and more efficacious
use of contraception, and abortion attitudes. These relationships
were hypothesized to be statistically significant after controlling
for the effects of religious affiliation, religiosity, residence, and

commitment to intercourse partner.

Tables 4.10 and.#.11 present the zero-order correlation
coefficients for the variables in Hypotheses V and VI. At the zero- ‘
order level, the data do not show the expected significant relation-
ships. Of the control variables, only among males were religiosity
and commitment to intercourse partner significantly related to
contraceptive use (r = .27: P<.01 and r = .18; p< .05, respectively).
Of the two test factors, only frequency of intercourse with the current
or the most recent partner was significantly related to contraceptive
efficacy for both male (r = .25; p<:.01) and female (r = .43; p<<.01)

respondents. As for abortion attitudes, religious affiliation and

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86

religiosity were the only predictor variables which were significantly
related among males (r = -.20; p<:.O5 and -.34: P'<.01, respectively)

and females (r = -.17; p.<.05 and -.38; p‘<.01, respectively).

In a multivariate framework, these relationships did not
change. The overall goodness-of-fit test for the total variance in
contraceptive use (Table 4.12) explained by the full regression model
yielded a statistically significant F ratio for male respondents only
(F = 2.21; p«<.OjD. Furthermore, of the four control variables, only
religiosity was statistically significant for contraceptive use; and
this finding was, once again, limited to male respondents (FSR = 4.50;

.22) ,

p.<.05). The direction of the relationship was positive (Beta
indicating that the more religious male respondents tended to be
greater users of contraception than were less religious respondents.
These findings were surprising. Male respondents had a greater

number of lifetime intercourse relationships (X = 2.6) than did female
respondents (i = 1.8), and perhaps* male respondents were more likely
to have been involved in simultaneous intercourse relationships. Thus,
male respondents may have had more difficulty in recalling precisely
the percent of time contraception was employed, than did females in

a particular intercourse relationship; and this difficulty may have
been greater among less religious than more religious males. Therefore,
systematic biases in recall of contraceptive use may explain why
religiosity was significantly related to use among males but not among

females and was positively related to that use among males. Frequency

 

*

Although data on simultaneous intercourse relationships were obtained
on the "Time-Line Chart" (see Appendix A), these data are not yet
available for analysis.

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88

of intercourse and number of lifetime intercourse relationships did
not have significant or cumulative net effects on contraceptive use
for either male or female respondents. This finding does not support

Hypothesis V.

The overall goodness-of-fit test for the total variance in
contraceptive efficacy explained by the full regression model (Table
4.13) yielded a statistically significant F ratio for female respondents
only (F = n.22; p<<.01). Furthermore, none of the four control variables
had a statistically significant independent or cumulative net effect

on contraceptive efficacy for either male or female respondents.

Of the two test variables, frequency of intercourse with the
current or the most recent partner had a statistically significant
net effect on contraceptive efficacy for male (FHR = 6.35; p<:.05)
and female (FHR = 21.60; p <.01) respondents. Men and women having
intercourse more frequently in their current or most recent affair
employed the more efficacious contraceptives. Furthermore, this
relationship was stronger for females than for males, the metric
coefficients being 4.05 and 2.64, respectively. The second test
variable, number of lifetime intercourse relationships, did not have
independent or cumulative net effects on contraceptive efficacy for
either gender. Therefore, this test yielded partial support for Hypo-

thesis V.

Contraceptive Use, Contraceptive Efficacy and
Attitudes Toward Abortion

Hypothesis VI stated that greater contraceptive use and efficacy

would be related to more favorable attitudes toward abortion, net of the

89

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90
effects of religious affiliation, religiosity, residence, and commit-
ment to intercourse partner. The data testing these hypothesized
relationships (Table 4.14) showed that the model explained less
variance in abortion attitudes among males (R2 = 13.7 percent; p<:.05)
than among females (R2 = 15.5 percent; p‘<.01). Religiosity had the
largest and only statistically significant F ratio for both males
(an = 10.00; p<.01) and females (FSR = 13.01; p<.01). The more
religious respondents had less favorable attitudes toward abortion. As

such, Hypothesis VI was not supported.

Ad Hoc Analyses

Hypotheses V and VI have not interpreted why nonvirgin res-
pondents tended to express more favorable attitudes toward abortion
than did virgin respondents. It was argued earlier that the perception
of conceptive risk was an important condition for the development of
permissive abortion attitudes among those who have become sexually
active. Perhaps contraceptive use and contraceptive efficacy were
not good measures of this perception and resulted in nonsupport of
the final two hypotheses. This point will be elaborated in Chpater
Five. A more reliable measure for one's perceived fecundity in the
present study would.probably be the discussion of pregnancy with the
intercourse partner. It would seem that conversations about conceptive
risk would encourage self-perceptions of fecundity. unfortunately,
this variable had two drawbacks: it was asked only of respondents who had
had more than one intercourse relationship and referred only to the
current or the most recent affair. The question and its open-ended

responses were:

91

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92

How often do/did you and your partner talk about the possibility of
pregnancy? Would you say ...

1. Never

2. Seldom

3. Sometimes

4. Fairly often
5. Very often

With this alternative measure of perceived fecundity, Hypotheses
V and VI were reformulated as Hypotheses VII and VIII, respectively.
Since the above question was asked only of those having had at least two
intercourse partners, it was decided to eliminate the number of lifetime
intercourse partners as a predictor variable.

Hypothesis VII. The greater the frequency of intercourse
with the current or the most recent partner, then the greater the
discussion of pregnancy, after the effects of religious affiliation,
religiosity, residence, and.commitment to intercourse partner have been
controlled.

Hypothesis VIII. The greater the discussion of pregnancy with
the current or the most recent intercourse partner, then the more
favorable the attitudes toward abortion, after the effects of religious
affiliation, religiosity, residence, and commitment to intercourse

partner have been controlled.

The overall goodness-of-fit test for the total variance in
discussing pregnancy risk predicted by Hypothesis VII did not yield
statistically significant F ratios for either male or female respon-
dents (Table 4.15). Of the independent variables, only frequency of
intercourse had a statistically significant net effect on discussion
of pregnancy risk and for male respondents only (FHR = 10.53; p<:.01).

A greater frequency of intercourse was associated with a greater

93

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94

discussion of conceptive risk (Beta = .47). As for female respondents,
none of the predictor variables had a statistically significant effect

on y. Therefore, Hypothesis VII was supported only for male respondents.

On the other hand, the overall goodness-of—fit test for the
total variance in abortion attitudes predicted by Hypothesis VIII
yielded statistically significant F ratios of 4.76 and 4.39 (p:<.01)
for males and females, respectively (Table 4.16). Of primary interest
was the finding that after the effects of religious affiliation,
religiosity, residence, and commitment to intercourse partner had
been removed from abortion attitudes, discussion of conceptive risk
explained an additional statistically significant portion of the variance
in y. A greater discussion of pregnancy risk was associated with more
favorable attitudes toward abortion. While this finding was true for
both males and females, the effect of discussion of conceptive risk on
abortion attitudes was stronger for females (b = 1.09) than for males
(b = .75). Furthermore, the full regression model explained a greater
percentage of the variance in abortion attitudes for females (R2 = 38.6)
than for males (R2 = 34.1). For both genders, religiosity remained
significantly related to abortion attitudes (Beta = -.41 and - .60 for
males and females, respectively). These findings, therefore, support

Hypothesis VIII.

Summary of the Direct Effects of the Study
variables on Attitudes Toward Abortion
The analyses thus far treated the effects of year in school,
peer-group orientation, sexual permissiveness, sex knowledge, and sex-

role ideology, frequency of intercourse, and number of lifetime

95

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96

intercourse partners as indirect effects on the formation of attitudes
toward abortion among persons who had ever had sexual intercourse.
Subjective perception of pregnancy risk, a hypothesized direct effect,
was operationalized by two different categories of surrogate measures,
the first being contraceptive use and efficacy. Thus, to examine
whether the variables hypothesized to have indirect effects might also
exert direct influences on abortion attitudes, the latter were regressed

upon all study variables (Table 4.17).

Of the control variables, religiosity remained negatively
and significantly related to favorable abortion attitudes for male and
female respondents. Of the test variables, frequency of intercourse
was significantly related to abortion attitudes for both male and
female respondents. The direction of the beta weights was positive
(Beta = .24 and .26, respectively) meaning that a greater frequency
of intercourse was associated with more liberal attitudes toward
abortion. For male respondents, sexual permissiveness also contributed
a statistically significant increment to the explained variance in y
(F

HR
positive (Beta = .31) supports earlier research showing a greater

= 11.92; p<<.01). That the direction of the beta weight was

sexual permissiveness was associated with more favorable attitudes
toward abortion (Maxwell, 1970; Mirande and Hammer, 1974). The direct
effects of year in school and peer—group orientation were not statis-

tically significant for either male or female respondents.

A second category of surrogate measures for subjective
perception of one's pregnancy risk was the discussion of such risk

with the current or the most recent intercourse partner. Thus, to

97

 

 

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99

examine whether year in school, peer-group orientation, sexual
permissiveness, sex knowledge, and sex-role ideology, and frequency
of intercourse might have direct as well as indirect effects upon
abortion attitudes in this second model, abortion attitudes were

regressed upon all study variables (Table 4.18).

Religiosity exerted the strongest direct effect upon abortion
attitudes (males: Beta = -.45; females: Beta = -.51). Commitment to
intercourse partner explained a statistically significant proportion
of the variance in abortion attitudes for male respondents only (FSR =
8.00; p<:.01), meaning that a greater commitment to the intercourse
partner was associated with more conservative attitudes toward abortion.
Considered together, the cumulative net effects of the control variables
explained a statistically significant proportion of the variance in

abortion attitudes for both male and female respondents.

Since it was proposed in this study that the effect of the
peer group on abortion attitudes was to Operate through sex-role
ideology, sex knowledge, sexual permissiveness, and frequency of inter-
course, then, when all the test variables were introduced into the
regression equation, only perception of conceptive risk (a hypothesized
direct effect) should attain a statistical significance. The analysis
yielded compatible results only for female respondents. For females,
discussion of conceptive risk was the only test variable which had a
statistically significant effect on abortion attitudes (FHR = 5.76;
p<<.05). For male respondents, frequency of intercourse remained
significantly related to abortion attitudes (FHR = 13.09; p <.01). Year

in school and sex knowledge also contributed statistically significant

100

 

 

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102
increments to the explained variance in y (FHR = 10.19; p<:.01 and
4.31; p.<.05, respectively) for males. That the relationship between
year in school and abortion attitudes was statistically significant
(Beta = .29), may suggest that the attrition of less peer-group
integrated students throughout the college years may have yielded a
significant positive effect on attitudes toward abortion. While for
female respondents, the effect of peer-group orientation on abortion
attitudes may be through increasing sex knowledge, sexual permissiveness,
sexual intercourse, and the perception of conceptive risk, the peer-group
effect on males' abortion attitudes probably operates through enhancing
sex knowledge but primarily through encouraging a greater frequency

of intercourse.

This difference between males and females in pathways through
which the indirect effect of the peer group operates on abortion
attitudes may be related to differences in the amount of time spent
with peers or the usefulness of peers in providing Sex information.

One may also argue that since women are the ones who get pregnant and
have to deal with the consequences of unwanted pregnancy, they may be
more likely than men to be concerned about controlling their fertility.
This concern may make females more receptive than males to sex knowledge
available from the peer group and.may explain why the effect of the peer
group on the sex knowledge was greater for female than for male res-
pondents (Table 4.6). The indirect peer-group effect on abortion
attitudes which operated through frequency of intercourse was apparently
stronger for males than for females. Perhaps as Komarovsky (1976) has
suggested, male peer groups pressure their members to engage in

sexual intercourse often as a proof of virility. The present study

103

suggests that if frequent intercourse encourages sexual partners to

discuss pregnancy risk, a liberalization in the abortion attitudes

of both partners may result. The implications of these findings will

be discussed in the following chapter.

CHAPTER FIVE

CONCLUSIONS

The general theoretical approach in this dissertation assumed
that college attendance provides a socialization experience toward
permissive abortion attitudes. The prime socializer was proposed to
be the peer group, which was thought to assume a more liberal and
powerful influence than the family of orientation in shaping one's
attitudes toward abortion. The peer group was thought to encourage the
development of a more nontraditional sex—role ideology, a greater clinical
knowledge of sex, and greater permissive attitudes toward premarital
intercourse. These three developments were then thought to promote
the initiation of sexual intercourse. Among the sexually active, a
greater number of lifetime intercourse relationships and a greater
frequency of intercourse should afford many empirical tests, as it
were, of one's ability to conceive, and should thereby heighten one's
awareness of conceptive risk. Furthermore, a recognition of one's
fecundability should induce more tolerant attitudes toward methods
to control conception, perhaps including abortion. A chain of six
major research hypotheses was developed to test each of these ideas.
Since the effects of religious affiliation, religiosity, residence,
and commitment to intercourse partners were thought to occur prior to
the effects of the test factors, the proposed relationships in Hypothe-
ses I through IV were adjusted for the first three control variables,

while the proposed relationships in Hypotheses V and VI were adjusted

104

105

for all four control variables.

The analyses suggested that one's orientation to peers
increased with college tenure, net of the effects of religious affilia-
tion, religiosity, and residence. With one exception, sex-role ideology
was not related to peer-group orientation, as was hypothesized. The
lack of a statistically significant association between sex-role ideology
and peer-group orientation may have been due to the relatively small
variance in sex-role ideology. Since sex-role ideology was coded:

(1) conservative ideology, (2) moderate ideology, or (3) liberal ideology,
persons in the "moderate" category may have held heterogeneous attributes
about sex roles. The variance in sex-role ideology was smaller for male
than for female respondents. A one—way analysis of variance between
sex-role ideology and year in school indicated.no statistically signi-
ficant association fOr male respondents (F = 2.35: p:>.05) while it
yielded a small but statistically significant F ratio (F = 5.80: p<:.01)
for female respondents. The statistically significant F ratio for females
may be functionally related to the greater attrition rate of traditionally
sex-role oriented female than male students due to marriage or premarital
pregnancies (Astin, 1975). Furthermore, while it was expected that year
in school would be positively related to nontraditional sex—role ideology,
the mean scores of the latter measure across year in school indicated
inconsistent results (Table 3.1). For male respondents, freshmen and
juniors were more nontraditional in their sex-role ideology than were
sophomores and seniors, respectively. Similarly, among female respon-
dents, sophomores were more nontraditionally sex-role oriented than

were juniors .

106

Perception of peers' sexual intimacy had a small positive
effect on nontraditional sex-role ideology for males. On the other
hand, sex knowledge and sexual permissiveness were related to at least
one dimension of peer—group orientation for both male and female respon-
dents. For female respondents, sex knowledge was significantly related
to both of the dimensions of peer-group orientation. For male respon-
dents, permissiveness toward.premarital sexual behavior was significantly
associated with both measures of peer-group influence. Therefore, the
peer group may encourage premarital sexual intercourse primarily
through providing clinical knowledge about sex (which tends to be tied
with sexual overtones and values encouraging sexual experimentation)
to women students and tolerance of premarital sexual unions to men
students. Confidence in this interpretation was bolstered by the
finding that the net effect of sexual permissiveness on the initiation
of sexual intercourse was greater for male respondents, while the net
effect of sex knowledge on this event was greater for female respondents.
These conclusions, however, must be viewed with caution because the
available data were cross-sectional. The temporal sequence of these
relationships cannot be adequately explored without a longitudinal

study. This limitation of the analyses will be discussed below.

In a study of abortion attitudes among college students,
Maxwell (1970) reported a positive relationship between sexual per-
missiveness and abortion attitudes. Therefore, he contended that
more favorable attitudes toward abortion were likely to develop
among persons with greater sexual permissiveness and behavior because
if conception were to occur, it might be terminated by abortion.

Maxwell's hypothesis implied that a majority of persons engaged in

107

premarital intercourse should develop favorable abortion attitudes.
However, in this study, it was argued.that not everyone engaged in
sexual intercourse would perceive the conceptive risk and, consequently,
would minimize it through the use of contraception. Rather, it was
hypothesized that a greater number of lifetime intercourse partners
and a greater frequency of intercourse with the current or the most
recent partner should bring about a greater perception of one's fecund-
ability, which would be reflected in a greater and more efficacious

use of contraception. Subsequently, it was hypothesized that the use
and efficacy of contraception should be associated with more favorable

attitudes toward abortion.

The analyses did not support these hypothesized relationships.
Perhaps the measurements of contraceptive use and contraceptive efficacy
did not adequately reflect the perception of one's conceptive risk. One
possible explanation for this problem may be one of recall. Since many
respondents had had several (in some cases simultaneous) intercourse
relationships, and since more than one contraceptive method may have
been used in a relationship, proper recall of contraceptive use may
have been apparently a problem. Similar difficulties in measuring
contraceptive use and.efficacy were also reported among currently
married women (Ryder and Westoff, 1971: Westoff and.Byder, 1977). As a
result, a second measure of subjective perception of fecundity was

employed.

It was thought that a discussion of conceptive risk with the
current or the most recent intercourse partner would encourage self-

perception of fecundity. For both male and female respondents who had had

108
at least two intercourse partners, a greater degree of discussion of
conceptive risk was associated with more permissive abortion attitudes,
net of the effects of religious affiliation, religiosity, residence,
and commitment to intercourse partner. Therefore, subjective perception
of one's fecundity may lead to a more favorable disposition toward
abortion. However, when abortion attitudes were regressed upon all of
the study variables, the indirect effect of peer-group orientation on
abortion attitudes took place through discussion of conceptive risk
only for female respondents. TherefOre, future research should seek
how male-female differences in abortion attitudes might result from
differences in the character of their peer-group interaction. For
example, it would be useful to explore whether male-female differences
in time spent with peers or in sex composition of the peer group might
lead to gender differences in sex-role ideology, sex knowledge, sexual

permissiveness, and (ultimately) abortion attitudes.

Unfortunately, the above reported findings are limited due
to the cross-sectional nature of the study. An alternative hypothesis
suggests that the attrition of more conservative students over the
college years may have significantly changed the social and demographic
composition of remaining students, apart from changes caused by
peer-group processes.‘ That is, the greater peer-group orientation
of upper— than lower-classmen may have been, in part, a result of the
attrition of less peer-group integrated students over the four college
years. Research suggests that due to the selective attrition of
students, student composition becomes more homogeneous from the fresh-
man to the senior years. For example, a higher probability of dropping

out of college was associated with poor academic ability (Morrisey, 1971:

109
Zaccaria and Creaser, 1971: Astin, 1972: Peng and Fetters, 1978), lack of
career commitments at the time of college entrance (Panos and Astin, 1968),
low socioeconomic status and/or inadequate financial support (Bayer, 1968:
Panos and Astin, 1968: Blanchfield, 1971; Astin, 1972) , plans for early
marriage and parenthood.(Bayer, 1968: Bayer, 1969: Astin, 1972), being of
a nonéProtestant religion (Astin, 1972), and being a female student (Astin,
1972: Peng and.Fetters, 1978). Therefore, senior students tended to be
from a higher socioeconomic background, to have a greater academic ability
and.a greater career commitment, not to have plans for marriage and parent-
hood at the beginning of college years, and.to be increasingly Protestant,
in comparison to freshman students. Furthermore, the female-student
composition tended to become more homogeneous than.that of male students
since females were more likely to drop out. Tb the extent that selec-
tive attrition changes the demographic and.social composition of college
students, selective attrition may have introduced biases into the study.

Therefore, cautious interpretations of the findings are emphasized.

In order to partially resolve the issue of attrition, an
indirect test was carried out by regressing abortion attitudes upon all
study variables (Tables 4.17 and 4.18). It was reasoned that if sample
attrition biased the conclusion that peer—group orientation indirectly
affects abortion attitudes, then year in school might have a direct
positive effect on abortion attitudes. 0f major importance was the
finding that year in school did yield.a statistically significant direct
effect on abortion attitudes among males. Therefore, selective attrition
of students may have introduced an independent effect on attitudes toward

abortion and, consequently, it must remain as an alternative hypothesis.

110

Since the issue of attrition cannot be satisfactorily resolved
in a single cross-sectional study, the need for a longitudinal research
design is emphasized. Such a study could be carried out by selecting
a random sample of 1000 freshman, never-married, male and female students.
They could be contacted by letter and asked to participate in a four-year
study of abortion attitudes. The sample respondents would be interviewed
during the Fall term over the next four years. Respondents interviewed
during their freshman year would become the Year I cohort of the study:
the same respondents would be contacted during their sophomore year
and would become the Year II cohort of the study: and so forth. This
research design makes possible the testing of the causal relationships
involved, e.g., whether or not staying in school would lead to a greater
peer-group orientation. If, for example, one's orientation to peers
increases as he or she progresses from the freshman to the senior
year, one may conclude that peer-group orientation may be causally
linked to college tenure. The effect of sample attrition on this
relationship could be estimated by comparing the peer—group orientations
of drop-outs and non-drop-outs. A finding of no statistically signifi-
cant difference for this comparison would further support the inference
that peer-group integration is a developmental social process during
college tenure. In a similar manner, changes in abortion attitudes
could be examined for association with changes in sex-role ideology,

sexual permissiveness, sex knowledge, and sexual experience.

The conclusions of this study are also limited to a sample of
respondents who were homogeneous in many respects: white, never-married
college students, ages 18 to 26, who had never engaged in sexual inter-

course prior to college entrance and who did not experience a pregnancy

111
in the current or the most recent intercourse relationship. Further-
more, the study was limited to students at a state university in Michigan.
Similar studies should be carried out among black and white college
students in all regions of the country, in parochial and.secular instit-
utions which are both coeducational and noncoeducational. A more hetero-
geneous sample would permit an assessment of how race, region, and type

of institution affect the relationships examined in the present study.

In spite of the limitations noted above, the findings of this
study provide several directions for future research. For example,
several studies (Meikle 921;, 1973: Oswalt, 1974; Needle, 1975: Zelnik
and.Kantner, 1972: 1978) have indicated that a large proportion of
young persons engaged in premarital intercourse did not use contraception.
Lack of motivation to contracept may be directly related to the inaccurate
perception of one's ability to conceive (Zelnik and.Kantner, 1972: Shah
§t_al;, 1975). However, self-perception of one's fecundity may increase in
.the future due to the lower age of menarche (Outright, 1972: Coe and Blum,
1972), the increase in the proportion of never-married young persons
who engage in premarital intercourse (Robinson 23.2la: 1972: Vincent
and Stelling, 1973; Jessor and Jessor, 1975; King and Sobel, 1975; Lewis
and Burr, 1975): and the delay of first marriages (Current Population
Reports, 1978) that have been noted in recent years. As such, more
research is needed to identify the technical and social-psychological
factors producing a subjective awareness of one's fecundity. These
efforts should employ direct measures of perceived fecundity status.

The perception of one's fecundity may be critical to the formation of
attitudes toward, and motivation to use, not only abortion but also

other methods of pregnancy prevention.

112

The relationship between attitudes toward abortion and
abortion behavior should be investigated. One value of studying abortion
attitudes lies in the assumption that they reflect the demand for abor-
tion. However, it may be debated whether abortion attitudes cause
abortion, whether abortion causes abortion attitudes, whether there is
a reciprocal relationship between attitudes and behavior, or whether
there is no relationship at all. For example, the report of the Commis-
sion on Population Growth and the American Future (David, 1972) indicated
that abortion attitudes and abortion behavior were not consistent among
blacks, who had more conservative attitudes toward abortion but
higher rates of abortion than did whites. This surprising finding may
indicate an inconsistency between abortion attitudes and behavior.
Therefore, the relationship between abortion attitudes and behavior

deserves future research.

The present study implies that abortion attitudes in the U.S.
may continue to liberalize in the 1980's. Since the age at first marriage
climbed by one year for both males and females between 1970 and 1978,

a continued trend.toward later first marriage would mean an increase

in the fecund life span during which women would be at risk of premarital
sexual liaisons and premarital pregnancy. This risk of premarital preg-
nancy would be further heightened if the age at menarche continues to
decline. Thus, the proportion of women seeking abortions would rise.
Furthermore, that the effect of religious affiliation (Catholic vs. non-
Catholic) on abortion attitudes was not statistically significant may
indicate that religious affiliation is no longer a key factor affecting
fertility behavior, the employment of birth control and, possibly,

abortion. Based on national fertility studies, Westoff and Jones (1979)

113

reported that a trend toward convergence in fertility rates between
Catholics and non-Catholics was in fact observed by the mid-1960's and
that, by 1975, the difference in fertility had nearly vanished. The
decline of Catholic fertility was believed to have resulted from the
increasing defection of Catholics from the official Catholic Church
position on contraception and abortion. On the other hand, the present
study showed that religiosity remained a strong deterrent to the
liberalization of abortion attitudes among a sample of college students
in 1976. Opposition to abortion is grounded in beliefs about when
human life begins (Blake, 1977b). Since these convictions, cross-
cutting Catholic and non-Catholic populations (Blake, 1977b), may be
based upon assumptions about a Creator, religiosity may continue to

foment an abortion debate in the 1980's.

BI BLI OGRAPHY

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APPEVDIX A

TIME-LINE CHART

APPENDIX A

TIME-LINE CHART '

The following chart, known in the major study as the Time-Line
Chart, was used in order to secure a wide variety of information about
dating, sexual, and contraceptive behavior of each respondent. This
information was later on coded into defined variables. Interviewers
were informed about the purpose of the Time-Line Chart and were well
trained in its administration. Below are the instructions which accom-
panied the Time-Line Chart and, for the purpose of illustration, a

hypothetical example is presented.

TIME-LINE CHECKLIST FOR INTERVIEWERS.
(Note: The numbers listed under each step correspond to the numbers
found on the Time Line).

Step A. Record.required information in the upper right corner.

1. Transfer Interview Number from front page of interview schedule.

2. Check sex of respondent.

3. Record respondent's date of birth.

4. Number the pages of the Time Line by individual page and the total
number of pages.

Step B. Determine the starting point of the Time Line horizontal (time) axis.

5. Write in the space provided under the first time interval the year
in school during which the respondent first started going out with
someone of the opposite sex: e.g., junior-high school or freshman-
college.

6. Write the age of the respondent at the beginning of the school year
during which he/she started going out in the space provided.

Step C. Complete the horizontal (time) axis from the starting point
determined in Step B to the present by writing for each new school
year the respondent's year in school and age at the beginning of
that school year up to and including the current school year in the
spaces provided under the time intervals. A maximum of 4 years can
be recorded on one page. If more than one page is necessary make

123

124

sure each additional page is numbered. (Note: If there have been
interruptions in the respondent's education other than normal
vacation periods, indicate this at the bottom Of the Time Line
beneath the appropriate time interval. Additional notes may be
made in the margin).

Step D. Complete the Relationship Section Of the Time Line.

7a.

7b.

7c.

7d.

Categorize each relationship the respondent has had with persons Of
the Opposite sex according to the categories listed along the vertical
axis between the top two heavy black lines of the Time Line.
Indicate the duration of each relationship by drawing a horizontal
line, Opposite the appropriate relationship category, over the
relevant time period. Indicate the start and.end Of each new relation-
ship by a short vertical bar. Changes in a relationship can be
shown by having a vertical bar at the beginning of the line indica-
ting the start of the relationship, by having no bars on lines
showing intermediate changes in the relationship, and by having a
bar at the end Of the line indicating the final state Of the rela-
tionship. (Note: For relationships that last less than 3 months,
please record the exact duration Of the relationship somewhere above
the line).

Number each different relationship consecutively from the first to
the current/most recent relationship. Write the number above the
line and circle it. (Note: Changes within a relationship with the
same person are indicated by using the same number: changes in
relationships (i.e., different partners) are indicated by using
different numbers).

For the categories Casual Acquaintance and Friend, it is possible
for the respondent to be dating several persons at the same time.
Multiple partners for these categories are indicated by writing the
number Of partners above the line. 'Dphppp circle this number. If
no number is written, it is assumed the respondent had only one
partner. However, for the Affection and.Love categories, each
relationship should be considered separately.

Step E. Complete the Behavior Section Of the Time Line.

8a.

8b.

8c.

For each relationship, indicate the most intimate behavior the
respondent has engaged in by drawing a line opposite the corres—
Onding behavior category over the appropriate time interval.
Note: Fbr all behaviors, except intercourse, this line is the
same length as the relationship line. For intercourse relationships,
the length of the line should represent only that period of time
within the relationship during which intercourse took place).
Write the relationship number above the beginning of each line and
circle it.
For intercourse relationships, write the codes for the type of
contraceptives used, the percentage of time each contraceptive was
used, the code for the frequency of intercourse, pregnancy scares
and/or pregnancies or abortions below the line.

Step F. Complete the Cohabiting Relationship Section on the Time Line.

9.

Indicate cohabiting relationships by drawing a line over the

125

apprOpriate time interval.

Step G. Check to see if the respondent would like to make any changes.
Make appropriate corrections.

CODE LIST OF CONTRACEPTIVES

Pill (P), IUD (I), Diaphragm (D), Condom (C), Foam (F), Rhythm (R),
withdrawal (w) , Morning After Pill (MAP), Other (0) , NO Contraceptive (NC).

FREQUENCY OF INTERCOURSE

0

Never had such a relationship/never had intercourse in this
relationship

Only once

Two or three times total

More than three times total, but less than once a month
About once a month

More than once a month, but less than once a week

Once a week

Two or three times a week

More than three times a week

(DVQKAC’WNH

Dating, sexual, and contraceptive behavior of a hypothetical
respondent number 5993 are presented on the Time-Line Chart below.
This respondent was a male, born on October 12, 1956, a SOphomore, and
was currently involved in an intercourse relationship with someone he
was in love with and planned to marry. This respondent started.dating
at the beginning Of his junior year in high school. He dated seven
casual acquaintances and ten friends during the academic year. He was
simultaneously involved in an Affection-Relationship which was developed
later on into a Love-Relationship but was terminated by the end of his
senior year in high school. At the time this respondent came to college,
he started a new Love-Relationship which was still continuing at the
time of the interview. Simultaneously, he also dated four casual

acquaintances.

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127

In high school, the respondent's behavior with the first
partner developed over a two-year period from Kissing to Intercourse.
Frequency of intercourse was "about once a month" and the birth control
pill was used 100 percent of the time. No pregnancy scares or pregnan-
cies took place in this relationship. In college, the respondent's
behavior with the new partner developed over a one-half-year period
from Kissing to Intercourse. Frequency of intercourse was "once a week".
Overall contraception used in this relationship was broken down into:
condom, 50 percent: rhythm, 25 percent: and withdrawal, 25 percent.
This respondent had only one pregnancy scare which turned out to be

negative.

In this study, the unit of analysis was the current or the
most recent intercourse relationship. Therefore, the second intercourse
relationship which started since coming to college would be selected
for the measurement of frequency of intercourse, contraceptive use
and contraceptive efficacy, and commitment to intercourse partner.

Taken as a whole, the Time-Line Chart indicates that this respondent
was nonvirgin, and the number Of lifetime intercourse partners was

two.

 

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