A group of researchers led by Dr Samuel Dada of Nottingham Trent University, United Kingdom, who is also an Alumnus of the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, having studied for a Master of Public Health in Health Promotion and Education, carried out a community-based study in Ibadan metropolis to document determinants for contraceptive use among married men.
According to the group of researchers; Dada Samuel Oluwasogo, Adebodun Great Oluwamayokun, Hussain Oluwatobi James and Tayo Oluwatoni Adediwura, the reason for the study was that most previous studies on contraceptive use and interventions to address unwanted pregnancies and population growth have been mostly focused on the female population. Limited empirical research has focused on the male population, who are important stakeholders in family planning and decisions.
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The study was a cross-sectional design among 402 randomly selected married men who are between the ages of 18 years and above in Ibadan Metropolis, Oyo State. The metropolis consists of five local governments, namely, Ibadan North, Ibadan South-West, Ibadan South-East, Ibadan North-West, and Ibadan North-East.
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The metropolitan city has several professionals across different fields as well as artisans. To get responses from the participants in line with the research objectives, a validated, self-administered questionnaire was used for data collection and the data collected were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics at a P < 0.05 significance level.
The investigation reveals that the majority (76.9%) of the men who participated in the study had a good knowledge of contraceptives and their different methods. Among many determining factors, significant influencing factors for contraceptive use reported in this study include level of education, availability and access to contraceptives, the cost of contraceptives, and the influence of peers.
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The men in this study reported that the barriers to contraceptive use were cultural, religious, and traditional beliefs, fear of side effects, partner disapproval, and the desire to have more children. Our findings revealed that access to contraceptives and the cost of purchasing contraceptives were the significant predictors for contraceptive use among men in Ibadan Metropolis (P < 0.05; odds ratio (OR) = 5.021 and P < 0.05; OR = 0.312, respectively).
This research stressed the need to design holistic public health interventions toward addressing the barriers to contraceptive use among men and improving efforts toward contraceptive access in Nigeria. To access the full paper, click https://journals.lww.com/jphp/fulltext/2025/01000/profiling_determinant_factors_for_contraceptive.3.aspx
