Proposed is a two phased, multi-method study aimed at describing strategies used by African American and Latino parents to discuss issues of sex with their children and to examine the influence of the family and culture on sexual risk behaviors among African American and Latino youth. In the first phase, we will use focus groups to identify strategies African American and Latino parents use to communicate with their children about sex. In the second phase, we will use questionnaires to examine the role of family and culture on STD and HIV risk among African American and Latino youth. The results of the focus groups will be used to develop questions for the quantitative phase of this study. Strategies parents use for communication about sex will be identified from the parent focus groups. Questions will be developed to examine the impact of family and culture on these strategies within African American and Latino families. Acculturation, ethnic identity, and generational status will be used to assess the role of culture in sexual health communication messages within the context of the family. Forty-eight parents (24 African Americans and 24 Latinos) will take part in the qualitative phase of this study. Four hundred families (one caregiver and one child per family - total number of participants equals 800) will be recruited to take part in the quantitative phase of this study. Each parent and child participant will complete a paper-and-pencil questionnaire with items to assess demographics, psychosocial factors (culture), parent-adolescent communication, and HIV risk among adolescents. Separate analyses will be carried out for the parent and child sample. Parent-adolescent communication is the primary criterion for the parent participants while STD and HIV risk is the primary criterion for the child participants. Culture and communication strategies will be examined as predictor variables for both parent and child participants. Audio computer assisted interviewing (ACASI) will be used with sensitive questions to increase validity. The strategies parents use or anticipate they can use to communicate with their children about sex will be identified in phase I. In phase II, these strategies will be confirmed in a larger sample. Phase II will allow us to examine the use or potential use of parent-adolescent communication strategies while taking into consideration culture and other family contextual variables.
The specific aims of this study are to: Phase I -Qualitative aims. 1. Identify strategies African American and Latino parents use to communicate with their children about sex. 2. Establish the utility of strategies for talking with teens about sex from prior research with African American and Latino parents. Phase II - Quantitative aims. 3. Examine how adolescent STD and HIV risk are handled within the context of the family. a. Examine how family factors (i.e., parent-adolescent communication, parental monitoring, parental social support, and family cohesion) impact STD and HIV risk within the family context;and b. Examine how cultural factors (i.e., ethnic identity, acculturation, and generational status) impacts STD and HIV risk issues within the family context. The proposed research addresses the first research objective listed in the RFA, """"""""Effective STD and HIV education and prevention activities among Black and Hispanic youth."""""""" The proposed research is relevant to two of the five areas under this objective. The first area is, """"""""identify and assess viable prevention approaches that successfully reach youth prior to onset of sexual risk behaviors."""""""" Our research targets methods parents can use to talk to their children about sex. Based on prior research, improved parent-adolescent communication reduces sexual risk behaviors of adolescents. The second area is, """"""""identify innovative STD and HIV prevention approaches to reach youth with targeted education and prevention."""""""" Research on parent-adolescent communication is not unique. However, the purpose of this research is to identify strategies African American and Latino parents can use to talk their children about sex that are culturally relevant. The information gleaned from this study will be used to develop innovative and culturally relevant intervention materials targeting STD and HIV risk reduction through parent- adolescent communication. The alarming rate of STDs and HIV in African American and Latino communities has become a serious public health concern. The proposed study seeks to reduce the rates of STDs and HIV through understanding and the development of strategies to improve parent-adolescent communication about sex among African Americans and Latinos. The strategies will be studied for their cultural appropriateness within the context of the family.
