This Mentored Scientist Career Development Award (K01) will provide the specific training, mentorship, and protected time required to facilitate the candidate's transition to research independence. Her training objectives are to develop advanced skills in geographic information systems (GIS) and sociometric network analysis, receive further training in the ethical conduct of research, particularly in international/cross-cultural settings and acquire skills in grant-writing and collaborative research. These training aims will be accomplished through a combination of didactic coursework and specialized workshops, instruction in the responsible conduct of research, directed readings with mentors, and meetings with training committee members who are nationally and internationally renowned experts in HIV, substance abuse, border health, GIS, and social networks research.
The research aims fit well with NIDA's mission to bring the power of science to bear on drug abuse and addiction and will be carried out through a study partially embedded in an existing study, El Cuete (R37 DA019829; PI: Strathdee).
The specific aims of the proposed research are to: 1) develop GIS models to examine the relationship between neighborhood (colonia) characteristics and clustering of a) HIV and b) recent voluntary drug treatment entry, 2) identify sociometric network attributes associated with a) HIV and b) recent voluntary drug treatment entry and 3) build a multi-level geographically weighted model to examine the independent and combined influence of colonia and sociometric network correlates on a) HIV and b) recent voluntary drug treatment entry. Sixteen seeds from 8 different colonias in Tijuana, Mexico will be selected from those recently enrolled in El Cuete to initiate the peer recruitment of 300 additional IDUs for the K01 study. To promote geographic diversity in the K01 sample, seeds will be required to report greater mobility (live, inject, and/or buy drugs in >1 colonia). To facilitate peer recruitmnt and the identification of all network ties (a sociometric network), participants will receive 10 recruitment tickets (with a unique recruiter ID, distinct from his/her study ID) and more if needed to distribute to IDU network members. IDU network members may be accompanied to the study site by their recruiter (peer-referral); if they arrive alone, they must correctly identify their per recruiter. Participants will also provide information about IDU network members which will be compared with locator information provided by study participants (in El Cuete and the K01 study) to identify additional network ties. Sociometric network data will be created by 1) connecting peer referrals, 2) linking individuals via recruitment ticket IDs, and 3) matching IDU network member information with that on participant locator forms to identify additional ties. Participants will also provide geocodable points for the locations where he/she spends > 1/2 of his/her time, buys drugs, uses drugs, and socializes. Findings from this proposal will have implications for recruiting hidden populations and will guide the development of future multi-level interventions to reduce HIV transmission and increase voluntary drug treatment entry.

Public Health Relevance

Evidence suggests that 1) both neighborhood- and network-level characteristics influence the spread of diseases and risk/health behaviors and that 2) both peer-driven interventions (PDIs) which capitalize on existing social connections and multi-level interventions which include both individual and structural components, are more successful in reducing disease transmission and altering risk/health-seeking behaviors than traditional interventions which focus on the individual. This proposal aims to better understand how these factors act independently and together to influence behaviors and disease transmission in the absence of an intervention; the findings from this proposal can be used to guide the development of multi-level interventions that integrate both structural and network approaches to specifically target the needs of those most at risk. Receiving training in GIS and sociometric network analysis will also improve the candidate's prospects for developing strong research collaborations, build a bridge between risk factor epidemiology and intervention research, and facilitate her transition to an independent investigator.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
Type
Research Scientist Development Award - Research & Training (K01)
Project #
5K01DA033879-05
Application #
8874938
Study Section
Special Emphasis Panel (ZDA1)
Program Officer
Hartsock, Peter
Project Start
2012-09-01
Project End
2015-12-04
Budget Start
2015-07-01
Budget End
2015-12-04
Support Year
5
Fiscal Year
2015
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation
Department
Type
DUNS #
021883350
City
Beltsville
State
MD
Country
United States
Zip Code
20705
Rudolph, Abby E; Young, April M; Havens, Jennifer R (2018) Privacy, Confidentiality, and Safety Considerations for Conducting Geographic Momentary Assessment Studies Among Persons Who Use Drugs and Men Who Have Sex with Men. J Urban Health :
Algarin, Angel B; Ward, Patrick J; Christian, W Jay et al. (2018) Spatial Distribution of Partner-Seeking Men Who Have Sex With Men Using Geosocial Networking Apps: Epidemiologic Study. J Med Internet Res 20:e173
Rudolph, Abby E; Young, April M; Havens, Jennifer R (2018) Using Network and Spatial Data to Better Target Overdose Prevention Strategies in Rural Appalachia. J Urban Health :
Young, April M; Rudolph, Abby E; Havens, Jennifer R (2018) Network-Based Research on Rural Opioid Use: an Overview of Methods and Lessons Learned. Curr HIV/AIDS Rep 15:113-119
Rudolph, Abby; Tobin, Karin; Rudolph, Jonathan et al. (2018) Web-Based Survey Application to Collect Contextually Relevant Geographic Data With Exposure Times: Application Development and Feasibility Testing. JMIR Public Health Surveill 4:e12
Crawford, Natalie D; Ford, Chandra; Rudolph, Abby et al. (2017) Drug use Discrimination Predicts Formation of High-Risk Social Networks: Examining Social Pathways of Discrimination. AIDS Behav 21:2659-2669
Rudolph, Abby E; Young, April M; Havens, Jennifer R (2017) Examining the Social Context of Injection Drug Use: Social Proximity to Persons Who Inject Drugs Versus Geographic Proximity to Persons Who Inject Drugs. Am J Epidemiol 186:970-978
Rudolph, Abby E; Young, April M; Havens, Jennifer R (2017) A rural/urban comparison of privacy and confidentiality concerns associated with providing sensitive location information in epidemiologic research involving persons who use drugs. Addict Behav 74:106-111
Rudolph, Abby E; Crawford, Natalie D; Latkin, Carl et al. (2017) Multiplex Relationships and HIV: Implications for Network-Based Interventions. AIDS Behav 21:1219-1227
Crawford, Natalie D; Dean, Trevano; Rivera, Alexis V et al. (2016) Pharmacy Intervention to Improve HIV Testing Uptake Using a Comprehensive Health Screening Approach. Public Health Rep 131 Suppl 1:139-46

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