Contraceptive decisions and HIV/AIDS concerns among married couples in Malawi.

Summary. This study investigates current contraceptive use among Malawi couples. The data examined are from the 2001 Malawi Diffusion and Ideational Change Project (MDICP). The aim of the study is to explore whether contraceptive use among married couples is affected by the couples concerns about HIV/AIDS and couples age difference. Contraceptive use was found to be associated with the couples HIV concern and family planning goals. There is no significant association between spousal age difference and contraceptive use. The findings are important for future work on the connection of marital concerns about HIV/AIDS with contraceptive behaviors especially the use of condoms and for informing HIV preventive strategies in marriage.