Objective: To describe an iterative approach to developing an online intervention targeting the intersection of alcohol use and sexual behaviors among first year college students. Methods and Participants: Using the multiphase optimization strategy (MOST), we conducted two iterative optimization trials to--(1) identify candidate intervention…

Background: Men who have sex with men (MSM) increasingly use internet-based websites and geospatial apps to seek sex. Though these platforms may be useful for public health intervention, evaluations of such interventions are rare. We sought to evaluate the online behavior of young MSM of color in Philadelphia and the effectiveness of using ads to…

Background: School health education, including sexual health education, plays a crucial role in shaping adolescents' protective health behaviors, experiences, and outcomes. Adolescents need functional knowledge and skills to practice, adopt, and maintain healthy behaviors for preventing sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including human…

Comprehensive sexual health education is critical for the prevention of STIs and unintended pregnancy among young people. Yet, increasing barriers to comprehensive sexual health education in classroom settings underscore the importance of youth-friendly technologies to address sexual health among young people. "It's OK to Ask Someone"…

Cervical cancer screening and human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination are critical for those immunocompromised due to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Health education programs, including text messaging, can effectively improve knowledge of cervical cancer and recommended screening. This paper describes the data-driven development of a 4-week…

The proportion of teenagers engaging in sex has declined in recent decades, and rates of teen births in the United States have reached a historic low (Osterman et al., 2022). However, risky sexual activity, which can result in teen pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections (STIs), remains a concern. To help reduce teen pregnancies and STIs…

Background: To build research capacity for early-career faculty conducting HIV/STI research with minoritized communities and to enhance diversity in the scientific workforce, the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) Center for AIDS Prevention (CAPS) conducts a training program for visiting professors (VPs), begun in 1996. VPs are in…

Objective: The type of health education messages that communities and individuals seek to have communicated about the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine is important if vaccine programmes are to succeed, especially in settings such as Papua New Guinea (PNG), which have a high burden of cervical cancer, low health literacy and negative experiences…

Young Black men (YBM) experience disparities in both HIV incidence and incidence of bacterial sexually transmitted infections (STIs); thus, developing efficacious behavioral interventions is an especially critical goal. One potential avenue for intervention involves improving sexual health communications among YBM and their partners, before sex…

Background: Mobile health platforms can facilitate social support and address HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) stigma but pose challenges for intervention design and participant engagement. Giddens's structuration theory, that individuals are shaped by--and shape--their communities through rules and resources that give them power to operate…

Objective: Adolescents' unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections have a significant impact on the individuals themselves and on society. Peer leaders are students trained to become role models and leaders who promote positive behaviour change in their schools and community. A few studies have examined the effects of taking the role…

Background: The US Office of Adolescent Health (OAH) funded studies of teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted infection (STI) prevention programs in 2010. The results of a 5-year OAH study conducted in the state of Hawai'i with middle school youth has implications for school leaders in the selection and implementation of comprehensive sex…

The current study offers preliminary insight into the efficacy of a technology-based question-asking, sexually transmitted infection (STI) prevention program to promote condom use and reduce the incidence of STIs. Participants were 104 college students who were provided safe sex information via 12, email messages, delivered over a four (4) week…

Objective: Internet-based health promotion offers a promising approach to fostering healthy sexual behaviour among adolescents. The objective of this study was to identify the potential of an Internet-based programme to improve sexual and reproductive health (SRH) knowledge among Malaysian young people. Design: A pre-test/post-test design was used…

In this article, we explore how visitors engage with a science museum exhibit that displays controversial topics. Through a case study methodology, we focus on the Brazilian exhibit "Preventing Youth Pregnancy" that delves into teen pregnancy, sexual practices, and sexually transmitted diseases. Using the lens of science communication…