Examining the knowledge and attitudes about masturbation and the risks in medical sciences students (Kermanshah-Iran, 2020)
Examining the knowledge and attitudes about masturbation and the risks in medical sciences students (Kermanshah-Iran, 2020)
Mohammad Amin Rezaei,1,*Mohammad Rasool Khazaei,2
1. Student Research Committee, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran 2. Fertility and Infertility Research Center, Health Technology Institute, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran
Introduction: Masturbation is to mechanically stimulate the sexual organs, which is a physiological phenomenon according to some researchers. Being a taboo and due to the lack of knowledge about this issue, the youth have to deal with several problems about masturbation. Having indigenous, accurate, and specially designed tools to measure the knowledge about the risks and attitudes to masturbation is highly important.
Methods: This descriptive study was carried out on male medical sciences students at Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences (basic sciences program) in 2019-2020. Through convenient sampling, 87 participants entered the study. Data gathering tool was a researcher designed tool with 35 items about knowledge of the risks and outcomes and attitudes about masturbation. The items were designed based on Likert’s four-point scale. Face validity of the tool was supported by 10 experts and the tool was provided to 15 students as pilot group to find and remove the weaknesses in the tool. After data gathering, four questionnaires were excluded for being incomplete. Data analyses were done in SPSS (v.22) using descriptive statistics (frequency, mean).
Results: The answers “completely agree” and “agree” were assumed as agreement of the participants about the risks of masturbation. The specifications with which more than 75% of the students were agree were detectability of masturbation habitsthroughout recruitment examinations, sterilization, changes in testicle size, muscular degradation, premature ejaculation, decrease in the quality and quantity of sperms, detectability of masturbation behaviors through sonography, risk of prostates cancer, losing hair, eyesight impairment, dark circles under the eyes, severe protein loss, decrease in learning performance, depression, anxiety, physical weakness, backpain, guilt, lordosis, and losing facial beauty.
Conclusion: There is an urgent need to inform students about the risks of masturbation.