Journal of Child and Adolescent Behavior
Open Access

Research Article

Conceptions of and Attitude toward Multiple Sexual Partners among Youths in Bolgatanga Municipality, Northern Ghana

Van der Geugten J^1,2*, Van Meijel B^1,3,4, Den Uyl MHG⁵ and De Vries NK²

¹Faculty of Health, Sports and Social Work, Research Centre Mental Health Nursing, Inholland University of Applied Sciences, Amsterdam, Netherlands

²Maastricht University Medical Centre+, CAPHRI School for Public Health and Primary Care Maastricht, Netherlands

³Parnassia Psychiatric Institute, The Hague, Netherlands

⁴Department of Psychiatry / VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, Netherlands

⁵Faculty of Social Sciences, VU University Amsterdam, Netherlands

*Corresponding Author:

Jolien van der Geugten
Inholland University of Applied Sciences
Faculty of Health, Sports and Social Work
- Research Centre Mental Health Nursing
P.O. Box 75068 1070 AB, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Tel: (+31)(0)641041806
E-mail: Jolien.vanderGeugten@Inholland.nl

Received Date: February 25, 2015; Accepted Date: February 09, 2016; Published Date: February 12, 2016

Citation: Geugten Van der J, Meijel Van B, Uyl Den MHG, Vries De NK (2016) Conceptions of and Attitude toward Multiple Sexual Partners among Youths in Bolgatanga Municipality, Northern Ghana. J Child Adolesc Behav 4:272. doi:10.4172/2375-4494.1000272

Copyright: © 2016 Van der Geugten J, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Objective: This study analyses the conceptions of and attitude toward multiple sexual partners among youths in Bolgatanga municipality, northern Ghana. Methods: Semi-structured and focus group interviews were held with 71 youths and 12 adults. Results: Youths’ multiple sexual partnerships were found to be related to various factors, including infidelity and distrust in relationships, cultural traditions such as the practice of polygyny and the importance of fertility, and modern developments such as increased school attendance and the use of new media. For boys, important motives for having multiple sexual partnerships are sexual prowess, prestige, desire, and pleasure, while for girls financial independence is important. Conclusion: The various influencing factors and the youths’ personal motives, combined with limited knowledge of SRH and risky sexual behavior prevents the youths from making well-advised and healthy choices concerning their sexual and reproductive wellbeing.

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