A study published last week suggests that Irish males need to be better educated about sex and to become more familiar with the subject from an earlier age. Steven Carrollreports.
The study by the Crisis Pregnancy Agency says all boys and men should be given detailed functional information about sex and how pregnancy occurs as well as support to encourage them to adopt a safe pattern of sexual behaviour from the earliest age.
Although not a large study - it featured interviews with 45 men - the agency nonetheless argues that it provides an interesting snapshot of men's experiences.
The study recommends that condom use be promoted from first sexual activity and that condoms be made widely available, preferably from dispensing machines, as some men find it embarrassing to buy them in shops.
In an attempt to ascertain how the general male population feels about sexual education in Ireland, The Irish Times spoke to some men in Dublin's city centre.
Peter White:
"When we were in school there certainly wasn't enough sex education," says Peter White, a 41- year-old fireman from Marino, in Dublin.
White thinks there is an element of peer pressure when it comes to young people becoming sexually active and he says that "sex education should be taught to school children from about 11 or 12 years of age".
"I don't think men are embarrassed to buy condoms any more. It is something that has passed, especially among people of younger generations."
White says he believes a lot of people still take chances when it comes to using contraception and that in his opinion condoms are "too expensive".
Vincent Gibbons:
A 50-year-old hotelier from Co Mayo, Vincent Gibbons says there is still a stigma in Ireland regarding buying condoms and that they should be more readily available. "It seems ridiculous really but I suppose some people are still embarrassed when it comes to buying condoms. I think access to condoms should be much greater than it is. Everybody sells newspapers so why doesn't everybody sell condoms?" he asks.
The issue of men being embarrassed about buying contraceptives leads Gibbons to believe there are a lot of people who still take chances regarding protection, which may result in crisis pregnancy.
However, he believes attitudes in Ireland toward crisis pregnancy have changed. "I know from growing up myself that there were quite a few unplanned pregnancies and it was always viewed as being the devil at work. But now I think most families are supportive."
Michael McGowan:
Cork student Michael McGowan believes school children are not given enough sexual education.
"We had very little [ sex education] anyway and I'm only out of school five years," McGowan says. "Today's children should be educated about sex from around sixth class or first year," he says.
"Condoms are not really widely enough available for younger people who should be using them. If they go into a shop they're a bit nervous and they're not allowed into pubs to buy them from a machine."
McGowan believes attitudes towards unplanned or crisis pregnancy has changed among younger generations. "I don't know anyone personally who's had a crisis pregnancy but I know of people who have. Older people would often look down on it but younger people kind of say that's the way it goes," he says. McGowan also thinks young people are willing to take chances when it comes to contraception. "In England condoms are given out free. That should be done here as well," he adds.
Alan Brennan:
A 41-year-old vendor from Sutton, Co Dublin, Alan Brennan has encountered crisis pregnancy first hand and he believes it is something that makes people act hastily.
"I know someone who had a crisis pregnancy and from what I remember it was very badly handled.
"The girl went to England to have an abortion.
"It's something that I'm totally against and as time has gone on the people have come to realise that they made a mistake," he says.
Brennan believes that condoms are widely available and that most men are not embarrassed when it comes to purchasing them.
He also says that both parties involved in a sexual relationship should be responsible for ensuring that contraception is being used.
"It shouldn't just be a macho thing of a man carrying a condom in his wallet, both people should be prepared for sex," Brennan says.
Young people in Ireland don't get nearly enough sexual education, according to Brennan.
He believes "young people should be educated about sex from about the age of 13".
Tim Duffin:
A designer from Tralee, Tim Duffin (23) believes students are not taught enough about sex in schools. He says children should be educated about sex "from the start of puberty, when they are 10, 11 or 12 years of age".
Duffin thinks that people are willing to take chances with regard to using sexual protection.
"People do take chances with contraception and when it comes to terminating pregnancies a lot of people are quite casual.
"If a pregnancy occurs now people don't see it as being the end of the world," Duffin says.
"I don't think people are embarrassed anymore when it comes to buying condoms. I saw something about that in the news recently but I think it was a bit overblown," he says.
Unplanned pregnancies are something that people have had to become more capable of dealing with and, from Duffin's experience, "the people affected were mature enough to handle it properly. They were about 22 at the time and they just got on with what had happened."
Duffin says condoms are too expensive and one idea that might lead people to use them more regularly would be if "they could be dispensed on a medical card or a scheme like it".
Gene Murphy:
A 63-year-old retired man living in Dublin, Gene Murphy says young people are not getting enough sex education.
"It's a debatable point but I would figure from the way modern trends are going that from the age of 11 or 12 comprehensive sex education should be given to school children," he says.
He does not think that Irish people are embarrassed about buying condoms.
On crisis pregnancy, Murphy says: "I haven't really known anyone who has had an unplanned pregnancy. I must have lived a very sheltered life."