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The Moderating Role of Social Support on the Relationship Between Anxiety, Stigma, and Intention to Use Illicit Drugs Among HIV-Positive Men Who Have Sex with Men

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Abstracts

The present study examined the association between anxiety, stigma, social support and intention to use illicit drugs, and the moderating role of social support on the association between anxiety/stigma and intention to use illicit drugs among 450 Chinese HIV-positive MSM. Findings show that controlling for significant background variables, self-stigma and anxiety were positively associated with intention to use illicit drugs, while social support was negatively associated with intention to use illicit drugs. A significant moderation effect of social support was also observed, that the negative association between self-stigma/anxiety and intention to use illicit drugs was only significant among participants with lower levels of social support. Findings highlight the importance of reducing self-stigma and anxiety, and promoting social support in drug use prevention for HIV-positive MSM.

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Acknowledgement

We would like to express our heartfelt thanks to Mr. Xiaodong Wang, director of the local NGO, for his support in data collection and coordination.

Funding

The study was funded by the Providence/Boston Center for AIDS Research International Developmental Grant [P30AI042853] and the National Natural Science Foundation of China Young Scientists’ Grant [81302479].

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Health Behaviours Research, School of Public Health and Primary Care, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong

    Phoenix K. H. Mo, Xi Chen & Joseph T. F. Lau

  2. The Chinese University of Hong Kong Shenzhen Research Institute, Shenzhen, China

    Phoenix K. H. Mo, Xi Chen & Joseph T. F. Lau

  3. Department of Psychology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong

    Eliz H. K. Lam

  4. Department of Health Policy and Management, School of Public Health, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China

    Jinghua Li

  5. Sun Yat-sen Global Health Institute, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China

    Jinghua Li

  6. Department of Behavioral and Social Sciences, Brown University School of Public Health, Providence, RI, USA

    Christopher W. Kahler

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  1. Phoenix K. H. Mo
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Correspondence to Joseph T. F. Lau.

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Mo, P.K.H., Chen, X., Lam, E.H.K. et al. The Moderating Role of Social Support on the Relationship Between Anxiety, Stigma, and Intention to Use Illicit Drugs Among HIV-Positive Men Who Have Sex with Men. AIDS Behav 24, 55–64 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-019-02719-x

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