142nd APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition

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Examining the relationships between religiosity, spirituality, internalized homonegativity, and condom use among African-American men who have sex with men

142nd APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition (November 15 - November 19, 2014): http://www.apha.org/events-and-meetings/annual
Tuesday, November 18, 2014

Stacy W. Smallwood, PhD, MPH , Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health, Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, GA
S. Melinda Spencer, PhD, MA , Department of Health Promotion, Education and Behavior, Arnold School of Public Health, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC
Lucy Annang, PhD , Arnold School of Public Health, Health Promotion Education and Behavior, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC
James F. Thrasher, PhD , Department of Health Promotion, Education, and Behavior, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC
Melva Thompson Robinson, DrPH , School of Community Health Sciences, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV
Although disproportionate HIV infection rates among African-American men who have sex with men (AAMSM) have been well-documented, less is known about reasons for the disparity.  The Sexual Health in Faith Traditions (SHIFT) Study evaluated the relationships between religiosity, spirituality, internalized homonegativity, and frequency of condom use among a sample of 348 AAMSM living in the Deep South region of the United States.  Participants completed a self-administered, paper-and-pencil survey.  The Internalized Homonegativity Inventory (IHNI) was used to measure internalized homonegativity, the Religious Commitment Inventory-10 (RCI-10) to assess religiosity, and the Daily Spiritual Experiences Scale (DSES) to measure spirituality.  Structural equation modeling was used to determine relationships between religiosity, spirituality, internalized homonegativity, and frequency of condom use for both insertive and receptive anal intercourse in the last 3 months.  The mean age of participants was 28.24, and more than 20% were living with HIV.  Almost half of respondents reported using condoms “Every time” they engaged in insertive (48.3%) or receptive (45.1%) anal intercourse.  Structural equation models found that religiosity was positively associated with personal & moral homonegativity and negatively associated with gay affirmation, while spirituality was negatively associated with personal & moral homonegativity and positively associated with gay affirmation.  There were no significant direct relationships between religiosity and condom use or spirituality and condom use; however, there were significant indirect relationships using the dimensions of internalized homonegativity as mediators.  These findings suggest that religiosity and spirituality have the potential to influence AAMSM’s feelings toward their sexuality and engagement in safer sex behaviors.

Learning Areas:

Assessment of individual and community needs for health education
Diversity and culture
Social and behavioral sciences

Learning Objectives:
Explain how religiosity and spirituality are associated with condom use among AAMSM. Describe how internalized homonegativity mediates the relationships between religiosity, spirituality, and condom use among AAMSM.

Keyword(s): African American, HIV Risk Behavior

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am the principal investigator for the present study. i also have over a decade of experience in HIV prevention research and practice.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

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.