Apparent and true mean of some stigmatised numerical risky behaviours by MCSA, female sex workers participating in a national behavioural survey (N=872), Iran, 2010
| Risky behaviours prone to social desirability bias (numerical variables) | Apparent mean | True mean by MCSA | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean | 95% CI | Mean | 95% SI* | |
| Number of sexual contacts, last 7 days | 2.3 | 1.5 to 3.1 | 3.8 | 2.8 to 4.8 |
| Number of times condoms used, last 7 days | 2.6 | 1.8 to 3.3 | 2.9 | 2.2 to 3.6 |
| Age at first sex act for money, drugs or shelter | 24.8 | 23.0 to 26.6 | 24.9 | 23.3 to 26.4 |
| Number of clients, last 7 days | 1.5 | 0.9 to 2.1 | 2.3 | 1.6 to 3.0 |
| Number of days last week doing commercial sex | 2.9 | 2.3 to 3.4 | 3.7 | 3.1 to 4.3 |
| Income through last commercial sex act (US$) | 20.4 | 12.0 to 28.8 | 21.8 | 14.0 to 29.4 |
*Bounds are 2.5% and 97.5% percentiles.
MCSA, Monte-Carlo sensitivity analysis; SI, simulation interval.