Sociocultural Determinants of Risky Sexual Behaviors among Adult Latinas: A Longitudinal Study of a Community-Based Sample.

Patria Rojas,Hui Huang,Mariana Sanchez,Judith Brook,Tan Li,Mariano Kanamori,Christyl Dawson,Gira J Ravelo,Mario De La Rosa

doi:10.3390/ijerph13111164

Abstract

Few studies have examined the sociocultural determinants of risky sexual behavior trajectories among adult Latinas. To longitudinally examine the link between sociocultural determinants of risky sexual behaviors, we followed a sample of adult Latina mother-daughter dyads (n = 267) across a 10-year span through four waves of data collection. The present study investigates how risky sexual behavior (operationalized as sex under the influence of alcohol or other drugs, sex without a condom, or multiple sex partners) is affected by: (a) socioeconomic conditions; (b) mental health; (c) medical health; (d) acculturation to U.S. culture; (e) interpersonal support; (f) relationship stress; (g) mother-daughter attachment; (h) intimate partner violence; (i) religious involvement; and (j) criminal justice involvement. Results indicate the following factors are negatively associated with risky sexual behavior: drug and alcohol use, treating a physical problem with prescription drugs, religious involvement, and mother–daughter attachment. The following factors are positively associated with risky sexual behavior: higher number of mental health symptoms, being U.S.-born, and criminal justice involvement. We discuss implications for the future development of culturally relevant interventions based on the study findings.

Highlights

HIV poses a serious threat to Latino women aged 35 to 54 [1]
To better understand the reasons for the disproportionately high rates of HIV infection among Latinas, the present study examines the sociocultural determinants of risky sexual behavior of Latinas in the
The present study addresses the gap in the literature on the complexity of sociocultural determinants of health; it addresses two questions: Is acculturation a protective factor for HIV risk behaviors among adult Latina women? And, is involvement in criminal activities a risk factor for HIV infection? Prevalence of HIV has been found to be higher among female inmates (3%) than male inmates (2.5%) [75]

Summary

Introduction

HIV poses a serious threat to Latino women aged 35 to 54 [1]. In 2013, Latinos accounted for23% or 10,888 of the estimated 48,145 cases of HIV infection in the United States [1]. HIV poses a serious threat to Latino women aged 35 to 54 [1]. 23% or 10,888 of the estimated 48,145 cases of HIV infection in the United States [1]. Of the HIV diagnoses among Latinos, nearly 15% or 1610 were Latinas—86% of whom contracted the virus through heterosexual contact [1]. In 2014, among ethnic/racial groups of women, Latinas accounted for an estimated 15% of new HIV infections and their HIV incidence rate was nearly four times the rate of non-Latina white women [2]. In terms of HIV prevalence, among women living. Res. Public Health 2016, 13, 1164; doi:10.3390/ijerph13111164 www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph

Results

Discussion

Conclusion