Adapting the VOICES HIV behavioral intervention for Latino men who have sex with men.

Latino men who have sex with men (MSM) are disproportionately impacted by HIV/AIDS, but few behavioral interventions address their prevention needs. Adaptation of evidence-based interventions is a pragmatic strategy that builds upon lessons learned and has the potential to fill gaps in prevention programming. Yet there are few reports of how transfers are executed and whether effectiveness is achieved.

Having supportive social relationships is associated with reduced risk of unrecognized HIV infection among black and Latino men who have sex with men.

We examined the hypothesis that black and Latino men who have sex with men (MSM) who have supportive social relationships with other people are less likely to have unrecognized HIV infection compared with MSM of color who report lower levels of social support. We interviewed 1286 black and Latino MSM without known HIV infection in three metropolitan areas who were recruited using respondent driven sampling. Participants completed a computer-administered questionnaire and were tested for HIV.

Older partner selection, sexual risk behaviour and unrecognised HIV infection among black and Latino men who have sex with men.

Objectives: The authors examine whether young black and Latino men who have sex with men (MSM) who have older sex partners are more likely than those who do not have older sex partners to have unrecognised HIV infection. The authors examine whether the association stems from (1) increased sexual risk behaviour with male partners of any age, (2) heightened risk of being exposed to HIV infection by older partners or (3) a combination of these two factors.

Methods: The analytical sample consisted of 723 black and Latino MSM, aged 18-35 years, who were HIV negative or of unknown serostatus at study entry.

Mistaken assumptions and missed opportunities: correlates of undiagnosed HIV infection among black and Latino men who have sex with men.

Objective: To identify demographic, behavioral, and psychological variables associated with being HIV positive unaware among black and Latino men who have sex with men (MSM).

Methods: Participants recruited in 3 cities completed a computer-assisted interview and were tested for HIV infection (OraSure Technologies, Bethlehem, PA). HIV-positive unaware MSM were compared with MSM who tested HIV negative in bivariate and multivariate analyses.

Homophobia and racism experienced by Latino men who have sex with men in the United States: correlates of exposure and associations with HIV risk behaviors.

Using cross-sectional data collected from 1081 Latino men who have sex with men (MSM) recruited with respondent-driven sampling (RDS) techniques from Los Angeles and New York, we examined the extent to which Latino MSM reported exposure to social discrimination (i.e., experienced both homophobia and racism, homophobia only, racism only, or neither homophobia nor racism).

Especially for daughters: parent education to address alcohol and sex-related risk taking among urban young adolescent girls.

This study evaluates the Especially for Daughters intervention, which aims to provide urban Black and Latino parents with information and skills to support their daughters in delaying sexual initiation and alcohol use. In a randomized field trial, 268 families with sixth-graders were recruited from New York City public schools and assigned either to the intervention, a set of audio CDs mailed home; an attention-controlled condition (print materials); or controls. Girls completed classroom baseline and three follow-up surveys, and telephone surveys were conducted with parents.

Parenting and violence toward self, partners, and others among inner-city young adults.

Objectives: We examined relationships between parenting status and multiple forms of violence perpetration among young adults in high-poverty environments.

Methods: We analyzed data obtained from a survey of 990 young adults in New York City. Respondents reported on violence they had perpetrated toward themselves, intimate partners, and others.

Keep It Up: development of a community-based health screening and HIV prevention strategy for reaching young African American men.

This article addresses the challenge of developing HIV prevention interventions that not only prove to be efficacious but also are designed from the outset to overcome obstacles to reaching priority populations. We describe how community input has informed development of Keep It Up (KIU), a community health screening and behavioral prevention program for young Black men. KIU embeds HIV prevention in a broader health promotion campaign, with the goal of reducing stigma and reaching a population that bears a disproportionate burden of HIV/AIDS and other health problems-hypertension, high cholesterol, diabetes, asthma, and obesity.

Intimate partner violence among economically disadvantaged young adult women: associations with adolescent risk-taking and pregnancy experiences.

Context: Intimate partner violence negatively impacts the health of substantial proportions of young women in economically disadvantaged communities, where sexual initiation, aggressive behaviors, unintended pregnancies and childbearing are common among adolescents. It is therefore important to assess how adolescent risk behaviors and pregnancy experiences are linked to such violence during young adulthood.

Methods: Data from 526 participants in the Reach for Health Longitudinal Study who were surveyed during middle school (in 1995-1996 and 1996-1997) and at ages 22-25 (in 2005-2007) provided information on adolescent risk behaviors and pregnancy experiences, as well as experiences of intimate partner violence during young adulthood.

Maternal depression and mother-child interaction patterns: association with toddler problems and continuity of effects to late childhood.

Objective: Increased behavior problems have been reported in offspring of mothers with depression. In-home observations link maternal depressive symptoms (MDS) and mother-child interaction patterns with toddler behavior problems and examine their persistence into late childhood.

Method: Maternal characteristics (N = 153) and behaviors of two-year-old offspring (N = 215) were assessed in families from a randomly selected population cohort.

Understanding differences in HIV sexual transmission among Latino and black men who have sex with men: The Brothers y Hermanos Study.

HIV sexual transmission risk behaviors were examined among 1,065 Latino and 1,140 black men who have sex with men (MSM). Participants completed a computer-administered questionnaire and were tested for HIV infection. Of men who reported that their last HIV test was negative or that they had never been tested or did not get the result of their last test, 17% of black and 5% of Latino MSM tested HIV-positive in our study.

Parenting practices, parents' underestimation of daughters' risks, and alcohol and sexual behaviors of urban girls.

Purpose: In urban economically distressed communities, high rates of early sexual initiation combined with alcohol use place adolescent girls at risk for myriad negative health consequences. This article reports on the extent to which parents of young teens underestimate both the risks their daughters are exposed to and the considerable influence that they have over their children's decisions and behaviors.

Methods: Surveys were conducted with more than 700 sixth-grade girls and their parents, recruited from seven New York City schools serving low-income families.

Urban young women's experiences of discrimination and community violence and intimate partner violence.

This paper examines the interrelationships between urban young adult women's experiences of discrimination and community violence and their reports of involvement in intimate partner violence (IPV). We explore whether such experiences are independent risk factors for IPV victimization and perpetration, even when accounting for aggressive behaviors and related risk taking, including drinking and sexual initiation, during early adolescence. We use data from the Reach for Health study, in which a sample of 550 urban African American and Latina women was followed from recruitment in economically distressed middle schools into young adulthood, over approximately 7 years.

Circumcision status and HIV infection among Black and Latino men who have sex with men in 3 US cities.

Objective: To examine characteristics of circumcised and uncircumcised Latino and black men who have sex with men (MSM) in the United States and assess the association between circumcision and HIV infection.

Methods: Using respondent-driven sampling, 1154 black MSM and 1091 Latino MSM were recruited from New York City, Philadelphia, and Los Angeles. A 45-minute computer-assisted interview and a rapid oral fluid HIV antibody test (OraSure Technologies, Bethlehem, PA) were administered to participants.

Continued smoking and smoking cessation among urban young adult women: findings from the Reach for Health longitudinal study.

We examined smoking and smoking cessation among 538 young inner-city women who had been followed from early adolescence to young adulthood. Results showed that 14.3% of these young women had smoked in middle school, 26.

New York City young adults' psychological reactions to 9/11: findings from the Reach for Health longitudinal study.

This research examines psychological distress among 955 economically disadvantaged New York City residents surveyed during high school and again after the September 11th terrorist attacks (9/11), when they were young adults. As part of the longitudinal Reach for Health study, young adult surveys were conducted from 6-19 months post-9/11 (average 8 months), providing opportunity to assess types of exposures and psychological distress, including symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, hopelessness, and anger. Regressions of psychological distress on 9/11 exposure were performed, controlling for high school distress, prior exposure to violence victimization, and socio-demographic characteristics.

Rethinking the bystander role in school violence prevention.

Public concerns about school shootings and safety draw attention to the role bystanders can play in preventing school violence. Although school violence prevention plans are often required, there is little guidance about whether these should address the roles of bystanders and what actions bystanders should take in different circumstances, from more common instances of bullying and fighting to rare, but potentially lethal, threats and use of weapons. Literature pertaining to bystanders is reviewed and applied to the school setting.

Saving Sex for Later: an evaluation of a parent education intervention.

Context: Initiation of sexual intercourse prior to high school is prevalent among inner-city black and Hispanic youths, and has multiple negative health and social consequences. A promising strategy for addressing early adolescent sexual activity is parent education that addresses normal pubertal changes and the challenges of becoming a teenager.

Methods: A 2003-2005 randomized trial to test the effectiveness of Saving Sex for Later, a parent education program presented on three audio CDs, enrolled 846 families with fifth- and sixth-grade students in seven New York City schools.

Early alcohol initiation and subsequent sexual and alcohol risk behaviors among urban youths.

Objectives: We examined relations between early alcohol use and subsequent alcohol and sexual risk behaviors among urban adolescents.

Methods: A total of 1034 African American and Hispanic youths completed surveys assessing alcohol and sexual behaviors at 7th and 10th grade. After we controlled for early sexual initiation, we examined relations between early drinking and subsequent alcohol and sexual behaviors.

Sexual behaviors and risks among bisexually- and gay-identified young Latino men.

This research compares patterns of sexual behavior and sexual risk of bisexually- and gay-identified Latino young men who have sex with men (YMSM). Four hundred forty-one Latino YMSM were surveyed at community venues in New York City. Twenty-two percent of the sample identified as bisexual, and 78% identified as gay.