HIV/STD Risk Among Incarcerated Adolescents: Optimism About the Future and Self‐Esteem as Predictors of Condom Use Self‐Efficacy1

We tested a psychosocial model of condom‐use intentions among incarcerated adolescents, who are at exceptionally high risk for sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV. Incarcerated adolescents (n = 150: 139 male, 11 female; age = 13 to 17 years; 44% Hispanic, 39% Caucasian) provided face‐to‐face interviews. The model included past condom use and 2 classes of constructs: (a) general health‐behavior‐related constructs; and (b) sub‐population‐relevant developmental predictors. Affective attitudes, descriptive norms, and self‐efficacy for condom use predicted intentions directly. Mediational linkages from optimism about the future and self‐esteem through self‐efficacy to intentions were confirmed. Two characterizations of the relationship of attitudes to intentions were explored, yielding 2 models that accounted for between 45% and 51% of variance in intentions.