{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,2]],"date-time":"2026-10-02T13:04:49Z","timestamp":1790946289101,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":39,"publisher":"Public Library of Science (PLoS)","issue":"11","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2023,11,1]],"date-time":"2023-11-01T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1698796800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100005851","name":"Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["30164"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["30164"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100005851","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.plosone.org"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["PLoS ONE"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Sexual health literacy is one of the factors that affect sexual health. Several factors can influence sexual health literacy. As a result, the current study was carried out to determine sexual health literacy and its associated factors among Iranian couples. In 2022, 410 couples of reproductive age were referred to comprehensive health service centers and private clinics in Kerman city for the descriptive-analytical study. The study questionnaires included sexual health literacy for adults, sexual knowledge and attitude scale, marital intimacy scale, sexual intimacy scale, depression anxiety stress scale, sexual self-efficacy, the multidimensional scale of perceived social support, and socioeconomic status. Finally, multiple linear stepwise regression models were used to determine the factors related to sexual health literacy using the SPSS software version 22. According to the findings of this study, the mean(SD) of sexual health literacy in couples was 68.76(12.96), which was a desirable level. Furthermore, the findings revealed that sexual self-efficacy (B = 0.649\u060c P&lt;0.001), sexual knowledge and attitude (B = 0.217\u060c P&lt;0.001), the ability to identify reliable and non-reliable sources (B = -3.116\u060c P&lt;0.001), feelings of shame and embarrassment for obtaining sexual information (B = 1.860\u060c P = 0.011), social support (B = 0.127\u060c P&lt;0.001) and the obscenity of sexual issues in family (B = 1.764\u060c P = 0.015) were the final predictors of sexual health literacy in couples. It is suggested that researchers and health managers consider these factors when designing interventions to promote sexual health literacy.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0293279","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2023,11,1]],"date-time":"2023-11-01T13:42:26Z","timestamp":1698846146000},"page":"e0293279","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.corrections_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":20,"title":["Sexual health literacy and its related factors among couples: A population-based study in Iran"],"prefix":"10.1371","volume":"18","author":[{"given":"Hadis","family":"Shahrahmani","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8413-7175","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Nourossadat","family":"Kariman","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Zohreh","family":"Keshavarz","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Atefeh","family":"Ahmadi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Malihe","family":"Nasiri","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"340","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,11,1]]},"reference":[{"key":"pone.0293279.ref001","volume-title":"Developing sexual health programmes: A framework for action","author":"Organization WH","year":"2010"},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0293279.ref002","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"391","DOI":"10.4103\/jehp.jehp_1484_20","article-title":"The effect of sexual health literacy on the sexual life quality of women referring to healthcare centers in Qazvin, Iran.","volume":"10","author":"R Panahi","year":"2021","journal-title":"J Educ Health Promot."},{"issue":"11","key":"pone.0293279.ref003","first-page":"6","article-title":"The association between sexual health literacy and sexual function of women in Iran.","volume":"11","author":"L Dehghankar","year":"2022","journal-title":"J Edu Health Promot"},{"key":"pone.0293279.ref004","article-title":"Young people\u2019s sexual health literacy: seeking, understanding, and evaluating online sexual health information.","author":"SP Martin","year":"2017","journal-title":"Phd Thesis, The University of Glasgow."},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0293279.ref005","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e0209675","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0209675","article-title":"Sexual and reproductive health literacy of school adolescents in Lao PDR.","volume":"14","author":"V Vongxay","year":"2019","journal-title":"PloS one"},{"issue":"4","key":"pone.0293279.ref006","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"318","DOI":"10.3934\/medsci.2019.4.318","article-title":"Sexual and reproductive health literacy of the youth in Bandar Abbas.","volume":"6","author":"F Dabiri","year":"2019","journal-title":"AIMS Medical Science"},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0293279.ref007","first-page":"59","article-title":"The relationship between sexual health literacy and sexual assertiveness in married women: A quantitative study in southern Iran.","volume":"21","author":"B Bahrampour","year":"2022","journal-title":"Payesh (Health Monitor)."},{"issue":"3","key":"pone.0293279.ref008","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e22564","DOI":"10.2196\/22564","article-title":"An Interactive Web-Based Sexual Health Literacy Program for Safe Sex Practice for Female Chinese University Students: Multicenter Randomized Controlled Trial.","volume":"23","author":"JY Wong","year":"2021","journal-title":"J Med Internet Res"},{"issue":"5","key":"pone.0293279.ref009","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"506","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jpag.2019.06.003","article-title":"Influence of Sexual and Reproductive Health Literacy on Single and Recurrent Adolescent Pregnancy in Latin America","volume":"32","author":"D Dongarwar","year":"2019","journal-title":"J Pediatr Adolesc Gynecol"},{"issue":"2","key":"pone.0293279.ref010","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"207","DOI":"10.1080\/13691058.2019.1700307","article-title":"Sexual health literacy among gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men: a conceptual framework for future research.","volume":"23","author":"L McDaid","year":"2021","journal-title":"Cult Health Sex"},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0293279.ref011","first-page":"56","article-title":"Development and psychometric properties of sexual health literacy for adults (SHELA) questionnaire.","volume":"25","author":"R Maasoumi","year":"2019","journal-title":"Journal of Hayat."},{"issue":"4","key":"pone.0293279.ref012","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"433","DOI":"10.1080\/19317611.2020.1841056","article-title":"Women\u2019s Sexual Health Literacy and Related Factors: A Population-Based Study from Iran.","volume":"32","author":"B Jamali","year":"2020","journal-title":"International Journal of Sexual Health"},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0293279.ref013","first-page":"21","article-title":"Development and validation of sexual knowledge and attitude scale","volume":"8","author":"MA Besharat","year":"2013","journal-title":"Contemporary Psychology"},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0293279.ref014","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"210","DOI":"10.1186\/s12978-021-01260-2","article-title":"Bio-psychosocial factor of vaginismus in Iranian women.","volume":"18","author":"M Banaei","year":"2021","journal-title":"Reprod Health"},{"key":"pone.0293279.ref015","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"841","DOI":"10.2307\/351796","article-title":"Intimacy and intergenerational aid and contact among mothers and daughters","volume":"45","author":"AJ Walker","year":"1984","journal-title":"Journal of Marriage and the Family"},{"key":"pone.0293279.ref016","volume-title":"A. Family measurement scales.","author":"S B S","year":"2000"},{"issue":"2","key":"pone.0293279.ref017","first-page":"199","article-title":"The Effectiveness of Spouse Treating Based Compassion Training on Improving Family Relations, Marital Conflicts, Forgiveness and Intimacy among Deaf and Semi-Deaf Couples","volume":"6","author":"Z Yousefi","year":"2018","journal-title":"Journal of Woman and Family Studies"},{"issue":"35","key":"pone.0293279.ref018","first-page":"241","article-title":"The Comparison Effect of Emotion-Oriented Schema Therapy and Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) on marital intimacy in Women with Marital Conflicts Referring to Psychological Centers.","volume":"12","author":"M Mirabi","year":"2021","journal-title":"Women Studies."},{"issue":"46","key":"pone.0293279.ref019","first-page":"496","article-title":"Effect of attachment-based couple therapy on sexual satisfaction and intimacy","volume":"12","author":"S Botlani","year":"2010","journal-title":"Journal of fundamentals of mental health"},{"key":"pone.0293279.ref020","volume-title":"Enhancing intimacy in marriage: A clinician\u2019s guide","author":"DA Bagarozzi","year":"2013","edition":"1"},{"issue":"3","key":"pone.0293279.ref021","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"335","DOI":"10.1016\/0005-7967(94)00075-U","article-title":"The structure of negative emotional states: comparison of the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS) with the Beck Depression and Anxiety Inventories.","volume":"33","author":"PF Lovibond","year":"1995","journal-title":"Behaviour research and therapy."},{"key":"pone.0293279.ref022","first-page":"36","article-title":"Validation of depression anxiety and stress scale (DASS-21) for an Iranian population.","volume":"4","author":"A Sahebi","year":"2005","journal-title":"J Dev Psychol"},{"issue":"29","key":"pone.0293279.ref023","first-page":"47","article-title":"Study of factor structure, reliability and validity of the sexual self efficacy questionnaire.","volume":"8","author":"S Vaziri","year":"2013","journal-title":"Thought & Behavior in Clinical Psychology"},{"issue":"5","key":"pone.0293279.ref024","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1105","DOI":"10.1007\/s10072-019-04222-6","article-title":"Prevalence, dimensions, and predictor factors of sexual dysfunction in women of Iran Multiple Sclerosis Society: a cross-sectional study.","volume":"41","author":"V Ghasemi","year":"2020","journal-title":"Neurol Sci"},{"issue":"3\u20134","key":"pone.0293279.ref025","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"610","DOI":"10.1207\/s15327752jpa5503&4_17","article-title":"Psychometric characteristics of the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support.","volume":"55","author":"GD Zimet","year":"1990","journal-title":"J Pers Assess"},{"issue":"3","key":"pone.0293279.ref026","first-page":"81","article-title":"Internet and communication: Perceived social support and loneliness as antecedent variables","volume":"5","author":"A Salimi","year":"2009","journal-title":"Psychological Studies"},{"issue":"2","key":"pone.0293279.ref027","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"318","DOI":"10.1556\/2006.8.2019.24","article-title":"Social media addiction and sexual dysfunction among Iranian women: The mediating role of intimacy and social support.","volume":"8","author":"Z Alimoradi","year":"2019","journal-title":"J Behav Addict"},{"issue":"16","key":"pone.0293279.ref028","first-page":"5","article-title":"The relationship between socio\u2013economic status and the rate of physical activity in Shahid Chamran University Students of Ahwaz","volume":"5","author":"A Ghodratnama","year":"2013","journal-title":"Journal of Sport Management"},{"issue":"3","key":"pone.0293279.ref029","first-page":"89","article-title":"The role of socioeconomic conditions in the citizens\u2019motivation for participating in public sports.","volume":"2","author":"A Eslami","year":"2014","journal-title":"Applied Research In Sport Management"},{"issue":"6","key":"pone.0293279.ref030","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"730","DOI":"10.1108\/00220410610714949","article-title":"Developing the information literacy self\u2010efficacy scale","volume":"62","author":"S Serap Kurbanoglu","year":"2006","journal-title":"Journal of Documentation"},{"issue":"2","key":"pone.0293279.ref031","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"671","DOI":"10.1007\/s10461-017-1950-z","article-title":"Gender, Sexual Self-Efficacy and Consistent Condom Use Among Adolescents Living in the HIV Hyper-Endemic Setting of Soweto","volume":"22","author":"K Closson","year":"2018","journal-title":"South Africa. AIDS Behav"},{"issue":"5, Supplement 2","key":"pone.0293279.ref032","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"S152","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jsxm.2022.03.351","article-title":"Socio-demographic factors, sexual attitudes, sexual self-efficacy, and sexual satisfaction on sexual health-seeking behaviors: A structural equation model","volume":"19","author":"S De Guzman","year":"2022","journal-title":"The Journal of Sexual Medicine"},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0293279.ref033","first-page":"73","article-title":"How self efficacy impacts on young women\u2019risky sexual behavior? A qualitative study","volume":"4","author":"A Rahmani","year":"2020","journal-title":"Journal of Qualitative Research in Health Sciences"},{"key":"pone.0293279.ref034","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"135","DOI":"10.1007\/978-3-030-36222-5_8","volume-title":"Cultural Differences and the Practice of Sexual Medicine: A Guide for Sexual Health Practitioners","author":"AI El-Sakka","year":"2020"},{"key":"pone.0293279.ref035","article-title":"Sexual Health Literacy, a Strategy for the Challenges of Sexual Life of Infertile Women: A Qualitative Study.","author":"Z Rakhshaee","journal-title":"Galen Med J."},{"key":"pone.0293279.ref036","article-title":"Promoting sexual health literacy in women of reproductive age: design, implementation and assessment of the intervention","author":"B. Jamali","year":"2021","journal-title":"Phd. Thesis, Tehran University of Medical Sciences"},{"issue":"7","key":"pone.0293279.ref037","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1309","DOI":"10.1016\/S0277-9536(03)00329-0","article-title":"Health literacy, social support, and health: a research agenda.","volume":"58","author":"S-YD Lee","year":"2004","journal-title":"Social Science & Medicine."},{"key":"pone.0293279.ref038","article-title":"Promoting reproductive health literacy in pre-marriage couples in Bandar Abbas: A participatory action research","author":"F. Dabiri","year":"2019","journal-title":"Phd. Thesis, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences"},{"issue":"3","key":"pone.0293279.ref039","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"207","DOI":"10.1071\/SH14223","article-title":"Sexual health literacy of the student population of the University of Tasmania: results of the RUSSL Study.","volume":"12","author":"S Simpson","year":"2015","journal-title":"Sexual Health"}],"container-title":["PLOS ONE"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/dx.plos.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.0293279","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2024,11,1]],"date-time":"2024-11-01T02:20:20Z","timestamp":1730427620000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/dx.plos.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.0293279"}},"subtitle":[],"editor":[{"given":"Samane","family":"Shirahmadi","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"editor"}]}],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2023,11,1]]},"references-count":39,"journal-issue":{"issue":"11","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,11,1]]}},"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.0293279","relation":{},"ISSN":["1932-6203"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1932-6203","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2023,11,1]]}}}