Contraceptive knowledge, attitudes, and practices among adolescent girls in a peri-urban South African community

Abstract Objectives To assess knowledge, attitudes, and practices related to contraceptive use among adolescent girls in a peri-urban neighbourhood of Mthatha, Eastern Cape, South Africa. Methods A population-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 116 adolescent girls using a structured questionnaire. Data were analysed using SPSS version 29. Descriptive statistics were used to summarise participants’ demographic characteristics and contraceptive knowledge, attitudes, and practices. Results Most participants resided in Chris Hani Site B (83.6%) and lived with a parent (94.8%). Condoms (73.3%) were the most recognised contraceptive method, followed by injectable contraceptives (19.0%) and oral contraceptive pills (17.2%). Only 29.3% of participants demonstrated a high level of contraceptive knowledge based on the selected indicators. All participants (100%) acknowledged that contraceptive use is a personal choice and is important for preventing unintended pregnancies. Nevertheless, overall understanding was inconsistent, indicating a gap between general awareness and informed knowledge. Among the 89 sexually active participants, 84 (94.4%) reportedprevious contraceptive use. Conclusions Although previous contraceptive use was high among sexually active participants, important gaps in contraceptive knowledge and understanding remained. Targeted health promotion, peer education, and community-based interventions are needed to address misinformation, stigma, and sociocultural barriers and to support informed contraceptive decision-making among adolescent girls.