Sexual Behaviors related to Alcohol Consumption among Korean College Students

초록

Excessive alcohol consumption among Korean college students causes major problems such as frequent incidence of sexual aggression and assault. The purpose of this study was to explore sexual behaviors occurring under the influence of alcohol among Korean college students, specifically to answer what changes occurred in cognition, attitudes and behaviors after drunkenness occurred as well as to examine the facilitating factors that induced unplanned sexual activities. The qualitative research method with a focus group approach was chosen to obtain descriptions of lived experiences of the participants after excessive alcohol consumption including sexual experiences, cognitive and attitudinal changes and sexual activities. A total of 19 subjects were recruited from several colleges using bulletin boards; the sample consisted of 10 male and 9 female students. Two focus groups were formed, one for each gender. The data were collected from two focus group sessions for each group. Data were analyzed using the Fullilove's problem-oriented analysis method. After alcohol consumption, four major stages of sexual experiences emerged. In the first stage, drunkenness was defined as judgment impairment and was accompanied by sexual arousal. In the second stage, physical contact was increased following drunkenness. In the third stage, unplanned sexual activity was influenced by four factors: location, time, partner and available financial resources of which may have made sexual activity more or less accessible. In the fourth stage, negative experiences occurred including regret, fear of unsafe sex, shame and feelings of guilt. These findings may facilitate development of intervention strategies for Korean college students that will help reduce negative experiences related to sexual activity after excessive alcohol consumption.