Dispensing choice: understanding intention to adopt Opill among college students using the reasoned action approach.

Abstract

Objective: Understand college students' beliefs about and intention to use Opill, the first over-the-counter birth control pill. Methods: Using the Reasoned Action Approach, the current study surveyed young women ages 18-30 (n = 461) about their attitudes, normative beliefs, perceived control, and intentions to use Opill when available. Results: Path analyses suggested that injunctive norms were most strongly associated with intention to use Opill, however, attitudes were most strongly associated with intention to use Opill among young women not currently using hormonal contraceptives. Important precursor variables such as social media use and pill misperceptions were also examined. An analysis of intenders and non-intenders revealed significant differences in attitudinal, normative, and control beliefs among those who intended to use Opill and those who did not. Conclusions: Findings provide insight for developing and tailoring health messaging about Opill to increase uptake among college students with varied contraceptive user statuses.