Address correspondence to Claire E. Sterk, Emory University, Rollins School of Public Health, 1518 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30322. csterk@sph.emory.edu
Keywords:
Condom
Steady Partner
Socioeconomic Status
African American
Beyond Sexual Partnerships: The Lack of Condom Use during Vaginal Sex with Steady Partners
Purpose:
The purpose of this paper is to identify independent correlates of the lack of condom use when engaging in vaginal sex with steady partners among HIV-negative African American adults. The conceptual model includes proximal as well as more distal domains.
Methods:
Cross-sectional data were collected between May 2009 and August 2011. Recruitment involved active and passive recruitment strategies. Computer-assisted, individual interviews were conducted with 1,050 African American adults. Multivariate logistic regression was used to identify independent predictors of a lack of condom use with steady partners in the past 30 days.
Results:
In multivariate analysis, being older than 35, being partnered, perceiving having a steady partner as important, and ever having been homeless were associated positively with the odds of a lack of condom use during vaginal sex with steady partners in the past 30 days. On the other hand, reporting more than one steady partner in the past 30 days, having health insurance during the past 12 months, and perceived neighborhood social cohesion were negatively associated.
Conclusions:
These findings highlight the need for HIV risk-reduction prevention and intervention efforts that consider distal as well as proximal domains. Such a perspective allows for a broader sociological inquiry into health disparities that moves beyond epidemiological factors that commonly guide public health research.