A social network typology and sexual risk-taking among men who have sex with men in Cape Town and Port Elizabeth, South Africa

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: Alex de Voux, Emory University; Stefan Baral, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health; Linda-Gail Bekker, University of Cape Town; Chris Beyrer, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health; Nancy Phaswana-Mafuya, Human Sciences Research Council; Aaron Siegler, Emory University; Patrick Sullivan, Emory University; Kate Winskell Enger, Emory University; Rob Stephenson, University of Michigan
• Language: English
• Date: 2016-05-03
• Publisher: Taylor & Francis (Routledge)
• Publication Version: Author Accepted Manuscript (After Peer Review)
• Copyright Statement: © 2015 Taylor & Francis. This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in, available online.
• Final Published Version (URL): http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13691058.2015.1096419
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: Culture, Health and Sexuality
• Volume: 18
• Issue: 5
• Start Page: 509
• End Page: 523
• Grant/Funding Information: This work was supported by the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases under Grant [1R01AI094575–01]; and was facilitated by the Center for AIDS Research at Emory University, P30AI050409.
• Keywords: MSM; GAY; HIV/AIDS; Social Sciences; Family Studies; HIV-POSITIVE SEROSTATUS; PREVALENCE; HEALTH; South Africa; sexual risk; Men who have sex with men; INTERNALIZED HOMONEGATIVITY; networks; Social Sciences, Biomedical; INFECTION; BEHAVIOR; Biomedical Social Sciences; YOUNG; CONCURRENCY
• Research Categories: Health Sciences, Public Health; Health Sciences, Epidemiology

Abstract

Despite the high prevalence of HIV among men who have sex with men in South Africa, very little is known about their lived realities, including their social and sexual networks. Given the influence of social network structure on sexual risk behaviours, a better understanding of the social contexts of men who have sex with men is essential for informing the design of HIV programming and messaging. This study explored social network connectivity, an understudied network attribute, examining self-reported connectivity between friends, family and sex partners. Data were collected in Cape Town and Port Elizabeth, South Africa, from 78 men who have sex with men who participated in in-depth interviews that included a social network mapping component. Five social network types emerged from the content analysis of these social network maps based on the level of connectivity between family, friends and sex partners, and ranged from disconnected to densely connected networks. The ways in which participants reported sexual risk-taking differed across the five network types, revealing diversity in social network profiles. HIV programming and messaging for this population can greatly benefit from recognising the diversity in lived realities and social connections between men who have sex with men.