New report investigates how young people make decisions about contraception

Posted on 1 October 2025 • Education, Health, University news

A new report into how young people make decisions about contraception has found that the most effective way to ensure that young people receive accurate information about contraception is for organisations to share messaging in a variety of ways, including using the channels and platforms that young people are familiar with.

According to research from The Open University and sexual health charity Brook, young people (16-24 year olds) rely on multiple sources of information to inform their decisions – including social media, friends and family, charities like Brook and the NHS.

They prefer a blended method, where they gain factual information from trusted institutions like the NHS and Brook, together with real-life experiences from friends, family, and social media.

Dr Victoria Newton, Senior Research Fellow at The Open University who led the research from the OU, said:

“Young people gather information about contraception from a variety of sources, often combining medically focused information from the NHS website with personal, experience-based insights. Many found personal stories shared both on and off line to be important in their decision-making and helped them consider potential benefits and side-effects of different methods. Looking to other people’s experiences also helped them to think about what the day-to-day experience of using that contraceptive might be like, beyond just medical facts. This highlights a possible gap in contraceptive consultations.”

Trust was the biggest influencer for young people when it came to decision-making and the level of trust held in the relationship had a distinct influence on how likely the participant would be influenced by the information given.

Trust and accessibility are crucial factors in decision making

Family members and friends were viewed as trusted sources, and information from institutions such as the NHS and Brook were also deemed reliable. When it comes to virtual information, such as social media, young people tend to act with more caution, trusting influencers with whom they are more familiar, more than someone new.  They were also less likely to view the information they received on social media as reliable if it was packaged as ‘clickbait’ or if was a paid partnership with another brand.

Accessibility was cited as another important factor, with young people preferring to source information with ease in a way that suited them.

The relevance of information to the healthcare system they can access was important – choosing UK-based influencers and webpages over those from different countries.

The report also showed that a lot of information targeted at younger people was based purely on using contraception to prevent pregnancy, rather than highlighting other benefits such as regulating menstrual cycles etc.

These findings of the report demonstrate the importance of healthcare institutions meeting young people where they already are and creating a sense of familiarity with their messaging.

The report concludes that is vital that messages about contraception are shared in different ways and throughout different points in a young person’s life to ensure that they can access and retain accurate information that can help them make contraceptive decisions.