Coercive Condom Use Resistance: A Scoping Review

Objective: Sexual aggression research has recently expanded to include empirical investigations of coercion during condom negotiation and use. This scoping review presents and discusses peer-reviewed, quantitative, English language studies conducted on coercive condom use resistance (CUR) behavior and intentions. Method: Our systematic literature search yielded 20 articles that assessed coercive CUR perpetration behaviors or intentions and met other inclusion criteria. Data on rates and correlates of coercive CUR behavior and intentions were extracted. Results: Identified studies used varied methods including cross-sectional surveys, 3-month longitudinal studies, and alcohol administration experiments, primarily with young adult samples. Overall, results indicated that a substantial minority (up to 42.6%) of sampled individuals endorsed lifetime perpetration of coercive CUR, with men reporting higher prevalence of coercive CUR perpetration than women. The majority of studies (70%) assessed coercive CUR through the Condom Use Resistance Tactics Scale (Davis, Stappenbeck et al., 2014). Although correlates largely differed by gender, alcohol-related variables emerged as risk factors for both men and women. Conclusions: Burgeoning evidence indicates that coercive CUR is relatively common, and, particularly for men, risk factors are similar to those associated with sexual aggression more generally. Review findings demonstrate that continued research in this area is warranted and should expand to include more diverse populations, to consider other risk factors and sequelae, and to utilize novel methodological approaches.