Understanding factors that contribute to African American and Latina women's elevated levels of HIV risk is a research area urgently in need of attention. The proposed research fills this gap by investigating the gendered and cultural factors that contribute to African-American and Latina women's sexual risk-taking behaviors. The proposed research will investigate the role of self- silencing (i.e., the extent to which women inhibit their self-expression to create and maintain valued interpersonal relationships) in sexual risk-taking using secondary data analysis of a four- wave, 18-month longitudinal study of 512 African American and Latina women (ages 18-67) in the greater San Francisco Bay Area. The three specific aims of the study are: (1) to test self- silencing as a predictor of women's sexual risk-taking behaviors (i.e., engaging in vaginal and anal intercourse without the use of a condom), developing separate models for African- American and Latina women;(2) to examine intrapersonal mechanisms (i.e., self-esteem, condom use self-efficacy, and sexual comfort) and interpersonal mechanisms (i.e., perceived negative relational consequences of condom use and perceived relationship power) through which self-silencing may contribute to women's sexual risk-taking;and (3) to examine the potential moderating roles of socioeconomic status and age on the association between self- silencing and sexual risk-taking. Distinct statistical modeling techniques (i.e., multivariate latent growth curve modeling and multi-group analysis) will be used to address the three specific aims. The proposed research will deepen our understanding of the factors that contribute to the staggering racial/ethnic disparities in HIV and other sexually transmitted infections among women. Self-Silencing and African-American and Latina Women's HIV Risk Behaviors Project Narrative While African American and Latina women combined represent less than a quarter of all women in the United States, they account for over three-quarters of newly identified HIV infections in women. The proposed research will deepen our understanding of the gendered and cultural factors that contribute to the staggering racial/ethnic disparities in HIV and other sexually transmitted infections. Findings will guide educators and health care providers wishing to promote behavioral change in the women who are disproportionately affected by these infections.
| Pearson, Matthew R; Kholodkov, Tatyana; Henson, James M et al. (2012) Pathways to early coital debut for adolescent girls: a recursive partitioning analysis. J Sex Res 49:13-26 |
