# Hormonal Contraception Use Among Young Adult Women

> **NIH NIH R03** · TRUSTEES OF INDIANA UNIVERSITY · 2022 · $79,250

## Abstract

This proposed R03 project focuses on an understudied but important question: how is hormonal
contraceptive method use associated with the frequency of sexual intercourse among mixed-sex couples?
Hormonal contraception is a safe and effective way to avoid undesired pregnancy, and 80% of sexually active
women have used the oral contraception pill (Guttmacher 2020). However, some evidence suggests that
sexual side effects of hormonal contraception – including decreased arousal and sexual functioning – may lead
some couples to discontinue its use (Higgins & Smith 2016; Sanders et al. 2018), leaving them vulnerable to
an undesired pregnancy. Very little research has described the links between hormonal contraceptive use and
sexual intercourse, and the studies that have explored these links have been undermined by cross-sectional
designs, small samples, and/or neglect of the intimate relationship context.
 We propose a state-of-the art statistical analysis of existing intensive longitudinal survey data. The survey
data are from 953 young women (ages 18-22) who participated in an NICHD-funded project, the Relationship
Dynamics and Social Life (RDSL) study, which collected weekly surveys on intimate relationships, mixed-sex
sexual intercourse, contraceptive use, and pregnancy for 2.5 years beginning at age 18 or 19. This data—with
repeated surveys within each relationship—provides the first opportunity to describe the interconnections
between heterosexual intercourse and hormonal contraceptive use across the course of these relationships.
 We have three specific aims for this project. First, we will estimate logistic regression models of the weekly
probability of sexual intercourse, using a within-between fixed-effects/random-effects (hybrid) specification, to
test our hypothesis that a mixed-sex couple’s probability of having sexual intercourse is lower when they are
using a hormonal contraceptive method than when that same couple is not using a hormonal method. Second,
we will use the same methods to test our hypothesis that the consequences of hormonal contraceptive use for
sexual frequency will accumulate over time, net of relationship duration. Third, we will use multilevel (mixed
effects) models, which easily permit the inclusion of cross-level interactions between upper-level
(individual/relationship) characteristics and hormonal contraceptive use as predictors of sexual frequency, to
test our hypothesis that the association between hormonal contraceptive use and sexual frequency differs
depending on the characteristics of the intimate relationship.
 We propose a complementary, uniquely qualified investigator team: Dr. Jennifer Barber, Professor of
Sociology and Senior Scientist at the Kinsey Institute (PI of RDSL project; expert in intimate relationships and
contraceptive use) and Dr. Shari Blumenstock, a post-doctoral fellow at the Kinsey Institute (expert in sexual
behavior and intimate relationships).

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10353718
- **Project number:** 1R03HD107320-01
- **Recipient organization:** TRUSTEES OF INDIANA UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** JENNIFER S. BARBER
- **Activity code:** R03 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $79,250
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-07-08 → 2024-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10353718

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10353718, Hormonal Contraception Use Among Young Adult Women (1R03HD107320-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10353718. Licensed CC0.

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