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Limited benefit of repeating a sensitive question in a cross-sectional sexual health study
BACKGROUND: Sexual health research relies heavily on self-reported data. We explored whether repeating a key measure – number of lifetime sexual partners – improved the validity of this self-reported response. METHODS: Using data from a study of Tanzanian plantation residents, we examined which of 5...
Autores principales: | , , |
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Formato: | Online Artículo Texto |
Lenguaje: | English |
Publicado: |
BioMed Central
2013
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Materias: | |
Acceso en línea: | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3614432/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23496958 http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1471-2288-13-34 |
Sumario: | BACKGROUND: Sexual health research relies heavily on self-reported data. We explored whether repeating a key measure – number of lifetime sexual partners – improved the validity of this self-reported response. METHODS: Using data from a study of Tanzanian plantation residents, we examined which of 505 participants changed their responses when a question about sexual partners was repeated. We examined which variable (first, second, or maximum response) was more predictive of herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) seropositivity, a biomarker strongly associated with number of lifetime partners. HSV-2 status was assessed using the HerpeSelect 2 ELISA IgG test. RESULTS: When asked a second time, 10.7% of participants increased and 3.6% decreased their reported number of partners. Participants using audio computer-assisted self-interviews were more likely to change than those interviewed in person (p = 0.006). The increased odds of HSV-2 seropositivity with each additional partner ranged from 10% to 13% in men, and 33% to 37% in women, depending on which partner variable was used. Estimates had considerable confidence interval overlap and no substantial differences in precision. CONCLUSIONS: Some participants change their responses when asked a sensitive question a second time, but in this population, changes did not meaningfully affect associations between lifetime partners and HSV-2. |
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