Abstract:
Background- The onset of mental health problems and risky sexual behavior (RSB) reach a
peak in late adolescence and young adulthood. Thus addressing the health issue of this segment
of society, is a public health priority.
Objective- The aim of this study was to assess risky sexual behavior and its association with
depression, alcohol consumption and khat use among Jimma University main campus regular
undergraduate students, Jimma, 2016
Methods- Institution based cross sectional study design was conducted .Data was collected by
using pretested, structured, self-administered questionnaire adapted from different literatures. A
total of 700 sampled students were included in the study. Participants were drawn by using Multi
stage stratified sampling method. Data was coded, entered, and cleaned using epidata manager
and client and finally exported to SPSS version 20 for analysis. Descriptive statistics, bivariate
and multivariate logistic regression model were used to analyses possible confounders and
Variables at p-value less than 0.05 were declared as independent predictors of risky sexual
behavior.
Results- The prevalence of RSB among Jimma University main campus regular undergraguate
students was 30.2%. The odds of RSB was higher among those who had severe depression, (AOR
(95%CI), 2.6(1.3-5.1)), than non depressed counterpart. The odds of RSB was higher among
those who had probabable alcohol use disorder (AOR (95%CI), 2.9(1.4-6.1)), than their
counterpart. The odds of RSB was higher among who chewed khat 2-4 times a month (AOR
(95%CI), 2.8(1.1-7.7)), compared to the non chewers.
Conclusion and recommendation
The prevalence of RSB among Jimma University main campus regular undergraguate students
was high. Having depression, probable alcohol use disorder, khat use, watching pornographic
movie, not participating in religious education and having peer pressure to engage in to risky
sexual behavior were independently associated with RSB, to mitigate this problems, holistic and
integrated efforts including Jimma University, governmental and NGO, and the surrounding
community are needed to be involved.
