Kinsey awarded grant for condom research

Last week, the Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender and Reproduction was awarded a $423,500 grant by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, a division of the National Institutes of Health, to study condom use.

The two-year study, headed by associate scientist Erick Janssen and associate director Stephanie Sanders, aims to understand why heterosexual men choose to either not wear condoms or take condoms off during sex because of a lack of sensation.

The grant was approved after submitting a proposal with some of the evidence found in previous studies, such as the 2008 Kinsey study that found men who visited a sexually transmitted disease clinic cited erection loss as one of the major reasons they were more reluctant to use condoms.

The study also found that men were three times more likely to not use condoms if they were less confident in how to use a condom correctly, Kinsey spokeswoman Jennifer Bass said.

“Quite a few men complain of problems with sensations, which can lead to inconsistent condom use and leads to a risk of HIV and STDs,” Janssen said. “This study is building on research we have been doing for years. But this is the first time we are going to measure in the lab, instead of learning from surveys.”

The testing will include asking subjects various questions about arousal and sensation followed by a second phase where they will be involved in a laboratory study on penile sensitivity and erection loss when using condoms.

Research such as this could help sex educators down the line and help prevent HIV and sexually transmitted diseases.

“It’s great when researchers get the chance to understand why people do these things with condoms,” said Kathryn Brown, IU Health Center health educator. “Because then I, as an educator, can talk to students about it.”