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Copyright of Culture, Health & Sexuality is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Culture, Health & Sexuality is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Culture, Health & Sexuality is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper describes the experiences and concerns of women participating in a short-term AZT intervention feasibility study to prevent mother-to-child HIV transmission at three sites in India. The study used qualitative methods to examine the experiences of 31 women during late pregnancy, delivery and at post-natal visits. It also elicited the perspectives of 19 healthcare providers. Frequent visits required during late-pregnancy and the post-natal period presented concerns for the women in the study. Women's understanding of the long-term implications of participating in the intervention study was poor, and living with uncertainty about the HIV status of the newborn was a major concern. The provision of psychosocial support is essential in future intervention studies and should be incorporated on an ongoing basis. Networking with women-centred support groups may be helpful in enabling women to gain the long-term benefits of this type of intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Culture, Health & Sexuality is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper discusses the heterosexual peer networks and partnerships among low-income, unmarried, college-going youth in an Indian metropolitan city. Findings derive from a study conducted in Mumbai using focus group discussions, in-depth interviews and a survey. Typologies of heterosexual peer networks identified include platonic 'bhai-behen' ('brothersister like'), romantic 'true love', and transitory and sexual 'time pass' relationships. The three typologies each reinforce dominant cultural norms of heterosexuality and, importantly, define the boundaries of sexual behaviour for unmarried youth. The category bhai-behen is important as a boundary marker distinguishing it from the tabooed true love and time pass friendships. The boundaries of these friendships are fluid and boys use this fluidity to their advantage as they engage in multiple relationships, while girls mainly engage in single, true love relationships. Findings contribute to an understanding of sexual culture among college youth in metropolitan India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes findings from a study on spousal communication and sexual decision making among women and men from a low-income community in Mumbai. The study explored the link between contextual, individual and socio-economic factors, sexual behaviours and communication to highlight sexual health consequences for women and men. It utilized a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods including a community profile survey, focus group discussions, repeated in-depth interviews, pile sorting and the sequencing of sexual behaviours. Family structure and duration of marriage were found to influence the quality of marital sexual relationship. Early experiences of violence and coercive sex limited women's participation in, and enjoyment of, sex. Respondents revealed a normative sequence of pre-coital sexual behaviours; those reporting sexual violence invariably violated this sequence. Women's experiences of sexual violence revealed lower perceived equity compared with men. Respondents reporting an absence of sexual violence revealed increased satisfaction in sex and highlighted positive aspects of the marital relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the ways in which newly married working-class adolescent women of Mumbai, India deal with their marital sexual experiences to transform their bodies from a body-for-others to become also a body-for-self. Using qualitative data gathered through repeated focus group discussions and in-depth interviews with 100 women, I examine the ways women used their bodies in culturally expected ways through participation in sexual activity and reproduction to acquire personal honour. Through the daily disciplining of sexual relations, women characterized their sexual bodily experiences to move from reluctance, shyness, and fear to one of pragmatism. Older married women invoked discourses of ideal femininity to normalize what newly married adolescents perceived as unpleasant events. In retrospect these women, who had experienced gains of status as mothers and honour as married women, transformed the disciplining of their bodies into a force for personal transformation, raising the possibility that their actions can be read as both submission and resistance to existing patriarchal norms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Successful inter-spousal communication is promoted as a key strategy to fostering shared decision making and responsibilities on reproductive health matters. With data from a large-scale study examining the risk factors of reproductive tract infections (RTIs) in married women, we investigated the extent of inter-spousal communication about reproductive illnesses and its influence on preventive and curative behaviours among 432 symptomatic women and 256 symptomatic men. Data derive from a cross-sectional field investigation conducted in five villages in rural Tamil Nadu in south India. Spousal communication on the experience of symptoms of RTIs was remarkably limited, and it did not have any influence on the preventive behaviour of the symptomatic men/women and their partners. However, the curative behaviour of symptomatic men/women was significantly influenced by spousal communication. Lack of spousal communication seems to be the consequences of the individual and collective perceptions about the causes of symptoms of possible RTIs, cultural norms about acceptable behaviours of men and women, and gender- and non-gender-based inequalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Culture, Health & Sexuality is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Culture, Health & Sexuality is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Culture, Health & Sexuality is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This study explores the sexual health problems and treatment-seeking behaviour of men in a Mumbai slum population. Men consider wet dreams, masturbation, early ejaculation, sexual weakness, and other semen-related issues as serious sexual health problems. Suppression of sexual desire was one of the major causes perceived by men for wet dreams, whereas masturbation was seen as the major cause for perceived early ejaculation and distortion in the shape of penis. Excessive loss of semen in any form, including through masturbation and frequent intercourse, was seen as causing most sexual health problems. These beliefs impact on subsequent behaviour, including treatment seeking. In this community-based study, about 45% of men reported to be currently suffering from one or more sexual health problems. One in every four who reported experiencing any problem sought treatment, mostly from the private sector that included a large number of unqualified and untrained providers. The present analysis stresses the importance of understanding these issues for sex education programmes and argues that traditional sexual health providers should be made an integral part of community-based STD/HIV/AIDS prevention efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conducted in a Mumbai slum population, this study examines the vocabulary men use to describe sexual health problems, cultural views about categorization, and the views of local health practitioners. Structured qualitative methods including free-listing, pile sorting and ratings were used. In addition to sexually transmitted infections, men are equally or more concerned about the quality and quantity of semen and 'impotence', which includes erectile deficiencies and premature ejaculation. A number of problems that may be indicative of the presence of STIs are thought to be transmitted through both sexual contact and other means subsumed under the category garmi. Men, as well as untrained non-allopathic sexual health practitioners, perceived the indiscreet wastage of semen through excessive masturbation, wet dreams or excessive sexual desire to be a major cause of these problems. A comprehensive reproductive health programme should address these male sexual health problems in order to motivate men to play more active and positive roles in reproductive health and family planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines the pathways by which gender norms may influence marital violence in low-income communities in Chennai, India. Individual, relational, community and societal level determinants of marital violence; Marital conflicts intensified by the presence of community level stressors such as poverty and unemployment.