270377 Whats Love Got To Do With It? An Event Level Examination of Sexual Behavior and Love among Men who have Sex with Men

Monday, October 29, 2012

Joshua G. Rosenberger, PhD, MPH , Department of Global and Community Health, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA
Debby Herbenick, PhD, MPH , Center for Sexual Health Promotion, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN
David S. Novak, MSW , OLB Research Institute, Online Buddies Inc., Cambridge, MA
Michael Reece, PhD , Dept of Applied Health Science, Indiana University-Bloomington, Bloomington, IN
Purpose: MSM continue to be disproportionately impacted by STI and HIV. In addition to traditional risk factors, increasing attention has been given to the potential role of affective components of a sexual encounter including mood state. To date, no study has described sexual behaviors engaged in by those who report being in love (or not) during a given sexual event.

Methods: Internet-based survey data were collected from (N = 24,787) MSM who were members of online websites facilitating social or sexual interactions with other men. Measures included sociodemographics, recent sexual behavior history, sexual event characteristics, and perceptions of “love” with men's most recent male sexual partner.

Results: Participants ranged in age from 18-87 years (mean = 39.2 years) and ethnicities included white (84.6%), Latino (6.4%), and African American (3.6%). Nearly all men (91%) were matched by presence (I love him/he loves me), absence (I don't love him/he doesn't love me), or uncertainty (I don't know if I do/I don't know if he does) of love with their most recent sexual partner. Men who reported love for their partner, and believed their partner loved them, were significantly more likely to have engaged in behaviors including cuddling and kissing on the mouth. Differences were also seen in regard to love and men's reports of anal intercourse (insertive and receptive) and oral sex.

Conclusions: Understanding the extent in which “love” influences various sexual behaviors provides a contextual perspective for clinicians and public health professionals attempting to improve the sexual health of MSM.

Learning Areas:
Diversity and culture
Public health or related research
Social and behavioral sciences

Learning Objectives:
Describe the relationship between "love" and sexual behavior practices among men who have sex with men

Keywords: Gay Men, Sexual Behavior

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have been the principal investigator on multiple studies related to MSM sexual behavior and have conducted research on related topics
Any relevant financial relationships? Yes

Name of Organization Clinical/Research Area Type of relationship
Online Buddies Inc internet based research Independent Contractor (contracted research and clinical trials)

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.