Navigating for sexual health information online-Decoding Homeless Youth's help-seeking behavior in networked spaces

Objective: Research documents that runaway and homeless youth (RHY) are reluctant to seek help from traditional health providers. The internet could be useful in engaging this population and meeting their sexual health-information needs. Utilizing Pescosolido's (1992) Network Episode Model (NEM) and Andersen's Behavioral Model (1995), we tested a model for sexual health information seeking online among RHY. Methods: 201 RHY were recruited June 2009 in Los Angeles and were surveyed regarding internet use, means of accessing the internet, and with whom they connected via social networking technology. Results: Multivariate logistic regression models revealed that more females than males (OR=.55) and more gay males (OR=10.7) than any other gender or sexuality sought sexual health information online. More significantly, as Pescosolido (1992) stresses in her NEM model, the structure of social network ties and the content of interactions across ties were found to be critical correlates of online sexual health information seeking. With respect to the antecedent structure of ties, continued connections to parents online was significantly associated with HIV/STI information seeking (OR=3.9). Likewise, for content of interactions, youth who received health forwards relative to those who did not, reported significantly higher rates of HIV/STI (OR = 3.8) and HIV testing information seeking (OR = 2.4). Implications: The internet can be utilized for sexual health-information dissemination and as a resource for providers to link transient, runaway and homeless youth to care. The internet would also allow providers to create personalized and meaningful content that is tailored to these youth's situation.