Dating couples and their relationships: intimacy and contraceptive use

Investigations of ineffective contraceptive use have generally focused on individualistic rather than dyadic factors. The present study used a sample of dating couples to investigate four intimacy dimensions in relation to contraceptive use. Fourteen consistent contraceptive use (CCU) couples and 16 inconsistent contraceptive use (ICU) couples participated. It was found that the two groups' expectations of intimacy did not differ significantly. However, the ICU couples reported experiencing significantly lower levels of emotional, social, and intellectual intimacy than did the CCU couples. Significant differences between realized and expected levels of intimacy were found only among ICU couples. The results indicate that partners with mutually dissatisfying levels of intimacy were more likely to use contraceptives inconsistently.