Background: Access and adoption of HIV prevention information are important criteria for reducing HIV infection rates among men who have sex with men. Methods: Using focus group data, researchers sought to identify sources of HIV prevention information and barriers to adopting protective behaviors among young African American men who have sex with…

Using a probability-based neighborhood sample of urban African American youth and a sample of their close friends (N = 202), we conducted a one-year longitudinal study to examine key questions regarding sexual and drug using norms. The results provide validation of social norms governing sexual behavior, condom use, and substance use among…

Substance use is increasing among youth in South Africa, and may be contributing to transmission of HIV. As parental death often leaves youth with altered emotional and physical resources, substance use may be greater among orphaned adolescents. Utilizing data from a household survey of 15-24 year old South Africans (n = 11,904), multivariable…

We examined the direct contribution of parent and peer risk and promotive factors on youth condom use trajectories, in addition to the indirect influence of these factors via youth's substance use over four years in a sample of urban, African American youth (N = 679; 51% female; M = 14.86 years; SD = 0.65). Growth curve modeling was used to…

Limited research has captured the wide varieties of distinct, but interrelated, life stressors that young men who have sex with men (YMSM) experience as emerging adults. We examined the way recent experiences of a diverse set of stressors predict illicit drug use, alcohol misuse, and inconsistent condom use (i.e., unprotected anal intercourse)…

The study attempts to understand the association of perceived gender role with youth sexual behavior using qualitative data such as focus group discussions (N = 8), in-depth interviews (N = 42), and free listing (N = 50) of rural married youths from Orissa, India. Data collection was conducted during July 2006-April 2007. Atlas. ti and ANTHROPAC…

Most studies on sexual behavior have approached the relationship between AIDS knowledge and sexual behavior unidirectionally. This paper sets out to examine a reciprocal relationship between AIDS knowledge and sexual behavior, in which it is possible that adolescents who enter into sexuality may start to actively seek out information on sex.…

This article is based on research commissioned by the UK Government's Teenage Pregnancy Unit. The Living on the Edge (LOTE) study qualitatively explored factors that shape young people's experiences and attitudes towards sexual behaviour and young parenthood in three linked seaside and rural areas in England. It identifies embarrassment as a key…

The question addressed in this paper is whether the beneficial effects of Primary School Action for Better Health (PSABH), an HIV prevention programme delivered in Kenyan primary schools, continue once students move on to secondary schools. Questionnaires were completed in December 2005 and January 2006 by all form 1-3 students in 154 randomly…

The high level of HIV infection in sub-Saharan Africa has led to an increased interest in understanding the determinants of sexual activity among young people, who are at high risk of sexually transmitted infections. The present study examined sociodemographic, behavioral, and psychosocial factors associated with heterosexual activity among a…

The impact of countervailing social network influences (i.e., pro-social, anti-social or HIV risk peers) on problem behaviors (i.e., HIV drug risk, HIV sex risk or anti-social behaviors) among 696 homeless youth was assessed using structural equation modeling. Results revealed that older youth were less likely to report having pro-social peers and…

The research reported here replicated Hocking et al. (Journal of Adolescence 22 (1999) 355) and further examined the effects of insisting on condom usage, by expanding the experimental conditions under which condom use occurs to include repeated sexual encounters in ongoing relationships. In Study 1, Hocking et al. (Journal of Adolescence 22…

The relationship between sexual sensation seeking and sexual risk taking has been investigated among adult populations. There are limited data, however, regarding this relationship for adolescents. Since African-American adolescent females continue to be disproportionately diagnosed with STDs, including HIV, we examined this association among a…

We examined the risk and protective factors and mental health problems of 105 low SES, urban adolescents whose mothers were coping with alcohol abuse and other drug problems. Approximately half of the mothers were also HIV-infected. As hypothesized, there were few differences between adolescents of HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected mothers in…

Examined heterosexual behavior among 908 18-year-olds in Glasgow, Scotland. Proportion who reported having experienced sexual intercourse was slightly lower than that reported in studies elsewhere. Found marked sex differences, with males reporting being significantly younger at first intercourse and having had more sexual partners than females.…