Over the last decade, the incidence rates of many sexually transmitted infections (STI) have been on the rise, especially amongst young adults. Popular Canadian media outlets have speculated that the reason behind these increases is the use of mobile dating applications which foster romantic and sexual connections. This cross-sectional study assesses whether students who use mobile dating apps are more or less likely to have been diagnosed with an STI in the previous 12 months and engage in risky sexual behaviour, compared to students who did not use mobile dating apps in the previous 12 months. An anonymous online questionnaire was used to collect data from 965 study participants currently enrolled at an Ontario university. The survey required participants to self-report STI testing behaviour and diagnoses, as well as sexual behaviours, including number of sexual partners, relationship type, condom use, substance use and sex work. I found that Ontario university students who used dating apps in the previous 12 months were more likely to have a greater number of sexual partners in the previous year (p<0.05), have multiple concurrent sexual partners (OR=10.72, 95% CI: 6.10-18.84), frequently use alcohol (OR=3.94, 95% CI:2.17-7.14) and cannabis (OR=3.36, 95% CI:1.45-7.78) in combination with sexual activity, and were more likely to have been tested for STIs in the previous 12 months (OR=2.25, 95% CI: 1.73-2.94) compared to non-dating app users. However, mobile dating app users were not more likely to have been diagnosed with an STI in the previous 12 months compared to non-dating app users. / Thesis / Master of Public Health (MPH) / This study investigated whether students who use mobile dating apps are more or less likely to engage in risky sexual behavior, and to have been tested for and diagnosed with a sexually transmitted infection (STI) in the previous 12 months, compared to students who do not use mobile dating apps. An anonymous online survey was used to collect data on sexual behaviour and STI history from Ontario university students. I found that Ontario university students who used dating apps in the previous 12 months were more likely to have a greater number of sexual partners in the previous year, have multiple concurrent sexual partners, use alcohol and cannabis in combination with sexual activity, and get tested for STIs more frequently than non-dating app users. However, mobile dating app users were not more likely to have been diagnosed with an STI in the previous 12 months compared to non-dating app users.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:mcmaster.ca/oai:macsphere.mcmaster.ca:11375/25580 |
| Date | January 2020 |
| Creators | Miller, Alanna |
| Contributors | Marshall, Tara, Health Research Methodology |
| Source Sets | McMaster University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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