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Unpacking the racial disparity in HIV rates: the effect of race on risky sexual behavior among Black young men who have sex with men (YMSM)

Journal of Behavioral Medicine volume 34, pages 237–243 (2011)Cite this article

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the large disparity in HIV prevalence rates between young Black and White Americans, including young men who have sex with men (YMSM). Research focusing on individual behaviors has proven insufficient to explain the disproportionately high rate of HIV among Black YMSM. The purpose of the present study was to gain a greater understanding of the pronounced racial disparity in HIV by evaluating whether YMSM are more likely to engage in risky sexual behaviors as a function of their partner’s race. Participants included 117 YMSM from a longitudinal study evaluating lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth (ages 16–20 at baseline), who reported characteristics and risk behaviors of up to 9 sexual partners over an 18-month period. Results indicated that participants were less likely to have unprotected sex with Black partners, and this finding was not driven by a response bias (i.e., Black YMSM did not appear to be minimizing their reports of unprotected sex). Furthermore, there was support for the hypothesis that participants’ sexual networks were partially determined by their race insofar as sexual partnerships were much more likely to be intra-racial (as opposed to interracial). It is possible that dyad- and sexual network-level factors may be needed to understand racial disparities in HIV among YMSM.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the IMPACT program, the youth who participated in this research, and the staff at the Broadway Youth Center. We would also like to thank Dr. Don Hedeker for his statistical consultation. This research was funded in part by a grant from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and a scholar’s award from the William T. Grant Foundation to Dr. Brian Mustanski.

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Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

    Elise M. Clerkin & Brian Mustanski

  2. Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

    Michael E. Newcomb

  3. University of Illinois at Chicago Medical Center, 1747 W Roosevelt Road, Room 252, Chicago, IL, USA

    Brian Mustanski

Authors
  1. Elise M. Clerkin
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  2. Michael E. Newcomb
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  3. Brian Mustanski
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Correspondence to Brian Mustanski.

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Clerkin, E.M., Newcomb, M.E. & Mustanski, B. Unpacking the racial disparity in HIV rates: the effect of race on risky sexual behavior among Black young men who have sex with men (YMSM). J Behav Med 34, 237–243 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10865-010-9306-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10865-010-9306-4

Keywords

  • HIV disparity
  • YMSM
  • Gay
  • Race