Does religiosity and ethnic identity serve as protective factors against risky sexual behaviors among a church-based African American population?

HIV in African American (AA) communities continues to be a major public health problem. While AAs make up 13% of the US population, they account for approximately 49% of HIV cases. While some studies have found mixed results, more have found that highly religious AAs and those with achieved ethnic identity states tend to engage in fewer risky sexual behaviors. Yet, few studies have focused on whether religiosity and ethnic identity may serve as protective factors against engagement in HIV risk behaviors among adult AA parishioners. The current study explored religiosity and ethnic identity as correlates of risky sexual behavior in a young to middle-aged adult AA church-based population. Study participants (N = 202) consisted of 140 women and 62 men (mean age = 25.1, SD = 5.0), of which 72% were single. Participants provided demographic, religiosity, ethnic identity, and sexual risk data. Participants were highly religious, primarily reported positive religious coping, and reported that their relationships with God moderately impacted their engagement in sexual activity. On average, participants had nine lifetime sex partners (SD = 11.9), and 81% inconsistently used condoms. One's relationship with God and engagement in ethnic identity exploration were both protective against sexual risk behaviors. Findings indicate that although this population appears to be highly religious, they are still at risk for HIV. Future research should continue to identify correlates of risky sexual behavior among AA parishioners in order to facilitate development of religiously and culturally informed HIV risk reduction interventions in AA church settings.