Racial and ethnic differences in men's knowledge and attitudes about contraception

Little is known about racial/ethnic differences in men's contraceptive knowledge and attitudes.

We used multivariable logistic regression to examine racial/ethnic differences in contraceptive knowledge and attitudes among 903 men aged 18-29 in the 2009 National Survey of Reproductive and Contraceptive Knowledge.

Black and Hispanic men were less likely than Whites to have heard of most contraceptive methods, including female and male sterilization, and also had lower knowledge about hormonal and long-acting reversible methods. They were less likely to know that pills are ineffective when 2-3 pills are missed [Blacks: adjusted odds ratio (aOR)=0.42; Hispanics: aOR=0.53] and that fertility was not delayed after stopping the pill (Blacks: aOR=0.52; Hispanics: aOR=0.27). Hispanics were less likely to know that nulliparous women can use the intrauterine device (aOR=0.47). Condom knowledge was similar by race/ethnicity, but Blacks were less likely to view condoms as a hassle than Whites (aOR=0.46).

Efforts to educate men, especially men of color, about contraceptive methods are needed.