Reproductive intentions and fertility regulation practices among university students

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To identify reproductive intentions and fertility regulation practices, including contraception and abortion, in a group of high schooling adolescents and young adults. METHODS: The data were gathered from a large quali-quantitative study carried out among University of São Paulo undergraduate students aged up to 24 years. The study sample consisted of 952 students who attended the university courses and were randomly drawn. In this first step, a self-administered questionnaire was applied to the students in the classroom. On the next step, in-depth interviews were applied to 33 volunteer students in a preset place. RESULTS: It was observed that the students' idealized family model is to have up to two children. The optimal age for having a first child is close to 30. The students referred high contraceptive use, especially condoms and the pill. High proportion of abortion was also observed. Consequently, fertility is considerably low in the study group, i.e., 27 students reported having one or more pregnancies. Qualitative data were not analyzed. CONCLUSIONS: Although the idealized family size reflects a general trend in the Brazilian society, it can be noted that the group delays maternity/paternity for the sake of a life project of getting a university degree and having autonomy. Despite that, contraception and prevention of sexually transmitted diseases are poor.