The World Starts With Me: using intervention mapping for the systematic adaptation and transfer of school-based sexuality education from Uganda to Indonesia

Evidence-based health promotion programmes, including HIV/AIDS prevention and sexuality education programmes, are often transferred to other cultures, priority groups and implementation settings. Challenges in this process include the identification of retaining core elements that relate to the programme’s effectiveness while making changes that enhances acceptance in the new context and for the new priority group. This paper describes the use of a systematic approach to programme adaptation using a case study as an example. Intervention Mapping, a protocol for the development of evidence-based behaviour change interventions, was used to adapt the comprehensive school-based sexuality education programme ‘The World Starts With Me’. The programme was developed for a priority population in Uganda and adapted to a programme for Indonesian secondary school students. The approach helped to systematically address the complexity and challenges of programme adaptation and to find a balance between preservation of essential programme elements (i.e. logic models) that may be crucial to the programme’s effectiveness, including key objectives and theoretical behaviour change methods, and the adaptation of the programme to be acceptable to the new priority group and the programme implementers

Action-specific Cognitions of Planned and Preparatory Behaviors of Condom Use among Dutch Adolescents

Many adolescents fail to use condoms, even when they are motivated to do so. An important reason for their failure to use condoms is that they do not prepare themselves for potential sexual encounters. The present study examined the circumstances under which Dutch adolescents were likely to prepare themselves for condom use (buying and carrying). In a sample of 399 secondary school students, including students with and without sexual experience, it was found that intended condom use was not sufficient to ensure that adolescents plan and prepare for condom use. It was found that having the goal of condom use did not necessarily result in preparatory behavior, such as condom buying and condom carrying. The data showed that action-specific social-cognitive factors of preparatory behavior explained preparatory behavior, beyond the decision to use condoms. This suggests that interventions aimed at promoting condom use should focus not only on condom use itself, but should also motivate and encourage adolescents to buy and carry condoms

An exploratory study of Muslim adolescents' views on sexuality: Implications for sex education and prevention

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>This paper describes the results of an exploratory qualitative study on Muslim adolescents' views on sexuality in the Netherlands.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Data were gathered from an Internet forum on which 44 Muslim and 33 non-Muslim adolescents discussed sexuality as it relates to Islam. These discussions were subsequently analyzed for content using Nvivo 2.0.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Our analysis revealed several issues that are relevant for the design of future sex education programs targeting Muslim youth. Apart from some expected outcomes regarding, for example, taboos on sexuality, sex outside marriage, abortion, homosexuality and conservative gender roles, our analyses showed that in cases of disputes 1) discussions were polarized, 2) opponents used the same Qur'anic passages to support their views, and 3) the authority of an Imam was questioned when his interpretation of Qur'anic passages was not in line with the views of participants.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our findings show that current approaches to sex education among Muslim youth are likely to be unsuccessful given the rigidity of sexual norms in Muslim society. In addition, we also identified new barriers to sex education among Muslim youth (e.g. lack of respect for an Imam who opposes a youth's views on sexuality).</p

Using Intervention Mapping to develop a programme to prevent sexually transmittable infections, including HIV, among heterosexual migrant men

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>There is little experience with carefully developed interventions in the HIV/STI prevention field aimed at adult heterosexual target groups in the Netherlands. The ability to apply intervention development protocols, like Intervention Mapping, in daily practice outside of academia, is a matter of concern. An urgent need also exists for interventions aimed at the prevention of STI in migrant populations in the Netherlands. This article describes the theory and evidence based development of HIV/STI prevention interventions by the Municipal Public Health Service Rotterdam Area (MPHS), the Netherlands, for heterosexual migrant men with Surinamese, Dutch-Caribbean, Cape Verdean, Turkish and Moroccan backgrounds.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>First a needs assessment was carried out. Then, a literature review was done, key figures were interviewed and seven group discussions were held. Subsequently, the results were translated into specific objectives ("change objectives") and used in intervention development for two subgroups: men with an Afro-Caribbean background and unmarried men with a Turkish and Moroccan background. A matrix of change objectives was made for each subgroup and suitable theoretical methods and practical strategies were selected. Culturally-tailored interventions were designed and were pre-tested among the target groups.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>This development process resulted in two interventions for specific subgroups that were appreciated by both the target groups and the migrant prevention workers. The project took place in collaboration with a university center, which provided an opportunity to get expert advice at every step of the Intervention Mapping process. At relevant points of the development process, migrant health educators and target group members provided advice and feedback on the draft intervention materials.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This intervention development project indicates that careful well-informed intervention development using Intervention Mapping is feasible in the daily practice of the MPHS, provided that sufficient time and expertise on this approach is available. Further research should test the effectiveness of these interventions.</p