In early 2020, the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) spread across the United States and mitigation measures drastically affected the daily lives of Americans. In this study, we assessed the ...association between COVID-related relationship conflict and changes in intimate and sexual behaviors and experiences. Using data from an online nationally representative probability survey of 1,010 American adults in April 2020, we estimated the impact of coronavirus-related relationship conflict on changes in intimate and sexual behaviors among those in any type of romantic or sexual relationship (N
weighted
=742). Further, we assessed the association between conflict and experience of orgasm and feeling emotionally close to partner. Among individuals in relationships, 34% reported some degree of conflict with their romantic partners due to the spread of COVID-19 and its related restrictions. Those experiencing frequent coronavirus-related conflict with their partner were significantly more likely to report decreased frequency of several solo and partnered intimate and sexual behaviors compared to those not experiencing any such conflict, exhibiting a dose-response trend among partnered sexual behaviors. Since the spread of coronavirus and associated social distancing measures in the United States, Americans have experienced escalations in conflict in their romantic partnerships, which was associated with changes to their intimate and sexual lives.
In this issue ofJournal of Adolescent Health, Giano et al.. use latent profile analysis (LPA) to examine how risk factors differentially combine to impact suicide risk among lesbian, gay, and ...bisexual youth. This article joins a fast-growing body of literature using statistical approaches to understand variability in adolescent health experiences. This editorial will focus on providing a brief review of how and when health professions researchers might use LPA or related methods in their own work. LPA is one method in a family of statistical approaches called mixture modeling, which has been described in excellent lay-focused reviews by Lanza and Cooper. Oberski, and Williams and Kibowski. These methods focus on uncovering how adolescents and young adults can be similarly "grouped" or "profiled" on a combination of different variables. The idea of looking for "sets" of related factors is not a new idea in adolescent health. Researchers often want to know how the intersection of social, interpersonal, and environmental/structural influences may have impact on health outcomes. However, the method that we choose to investigate these questions will influence our understanding of how these variable effects are interpreted in the population.
Purpose
To estimate the prevalence of depression and loneliness during the US COVID-19 response, and examine their associations with frequency of social and sexual connections.
Methods
We conducted ...an online cross-sectional survey of a nationally representative sample of American adults (
n
= 1010), aged 18–94, running from April 10–20, 2020. We assessed depressive symptoms (CES-D-10 scale), loneliness (UCLA 3-Item Loneliness scale), and frequency of in-person and remote social connections (4 items, e.g., hugging family member, video chats) and sexual connections (4 items, e.g., partnered sexual activity, dating app use).
Results
One-third of participants (32%) reported depressive symptoms, and loneliness was high mean (SD): 4.4 (1.7). Those with depressive symptoms were more likely to be women, aged 20–29, unmarried, and low-income. Very frequent in-person connections were generally associated with lower depression and loneliness; frequent remote connections were not.
Conclusions
Depression and loneliness were elevated during the early US COVID-19 response. Those who maintained very frequent in-person, but not remote, social and sexual connections had better mental health outcomes. While COVID-19 social restrictions remain necessary, it will be critical to expand mental health services to serve those most at-risk and identify effective ways of maintaining social and sexual connections from a distance.
In this paper, we evaluate the feasibility of using ecological momentary assessment (EMA) to understand urinary (UI) and fecal (FI) incontinence in adults with spina bifida (SB). As part of a larger ...30-day prospective study to understand the incontinence in adults with SB (N = 89), participants completed end-of-day EMA diaries assessing the frequency and context of UI and FI. We used these data to assess the method feasibility across six dimensions: (a) compliance, or data entry which is consistent with study protocol and substantially complete; (b) reactivity, or behavior change attributed to study participation; (c) participant acceptability, or convenience and ease of method beneficial to compliance; (d) data capture, or the volume of incontinence behaviors collected; (e) the accuracy of incontinence reports; and f) participant-provided feedback for future studies. Participants were highly compliant with diary entry protocol and schedule: submitting 95.7% (2576/2700) of the expected total daily entries. The average completion time was two minutes. Neither the total number of submissions nor the completion time varied by demographic characteristics or health history. A sufficient volume of incontinence and affective outcomes were captured, with small downtrends in reporting of UI and affect over time. Exit survey recall was highly correlated with diary reports. Participants found the methodology to be acceptable, reported their experiences honestly, enjoyed and felt comfortable participating in the study and would engage in similar study in the future. Accurate information about the daily context of UI and FI is a key factor in the success of intervention or education programs relying on this information. Our findings demonstrate that EMA is a feasible way to describe UI and FI in adults with SB.
The study purpose was to assess, in a U.S. probability sample of women, the specific ways women have discovered to make vaginal penetration more pleasurable. Through qualitative pilot research with ...women that informed the development of the survey instrument used in this study, we identified four previously unnamed, but distinct, techniques women use to make vaginal penetration more pleasurable: Angling, Rocking, Shallowing and Pairing. This study defines each technique and describes its prevalence among U.S. adult women. Weighted frequencies were drawn from the Second OMGYES Pleasure Report-a cross-sectional, online, national probability survey of 3017 American women's (age 18-93) sexual experiences and discoveries. Participants were recruited via the Ipsos KnowledgePanel®. Data suggest that 87.5% of women make vaginal penetration more pleasurable using 'Angling': rotating, raising, or lowering the pelvis/hips during penetration to adjust where inside the vagina the toy or penis rubs and what it feels like. Approximately 76% of women make vaginal penetration more pleasurable using 'Rocking': the base of a penis or sex toy rubbing against the clitoris constantly during penetration, by staying all the way inside the vagina rather than thrusting in and out. About 84% of women make vaginal penetration more pleasurable using 'Shallowing': penetrative touch just inside of the entrance of the vagina-not on the outside, but also not deep inside-with a fingertip, sex toy, penis tip, tongue, or lips. Finally, 69.7% of women orgasm more often or make vaginal penetration more pleasurable using 'Pairing': when a woman herself (Solo Pairing) or her partner (Partner Pairing) reaches down to stimulate her clitoris with a finger or sex toy at the same time as her vagina is being penetrated. These data provide techniques that are at women's disposal to make penetration more pleasurable-which can enable women to better identify their own preferences, communicate about them and advocate for their sexual pleasure.
PDF
