NCJ Number
222287
Journal
Journal of Youth and Adolescence Volume: 37 Issue: 4 Dated: April 2008 Pages: 456-464
Date Published
April 2008
Length
9 pages
Annotation
This study examined the risk for HIV among gay, lesbian, and bisexual (GLB) homeless youth and compared it with that of their heterosexual counterparts.
Abstract
The study found that, GLB youth had greater risk for HIV risk than heterosexual youth, and the risk was greater for bisexual females. HIV risk was measured by intravenous drug use; multiple sexual partners; high-risk sexual partners (prostitutes, IV drug users, and persons with HIV); irregular condom use; anal sex; prostitution; and ever having had a sexually transmitted disease. The study found that among GLB youth, "survival sex" (reporting having engaged in the exchange of sex for drugs, food, shelter, or money in the last 3 months) emerged as the strongest predictor of HIV risk. Among heterosexual youth, survival sex was also a strong predictor of HIV risk; however, substance use and emotional disorders also emerged as predictors of HIV risk. Female youth, regardless of their sexual orientation, were more likely to engage in survival sex than male youth. Intervention efforts should target these young women and their distinctive risk patterns and life situations. Study participants were 268 youth involved in 2 projects that assessed treatment outcomes with substance abusing homeless youth in the Southwestern United States. All participants were contacted through the only homeless youth drop-in center in a Southwestern urban center. Selection criteria were being homeless, being between 14 and 22 years old, and having lived in the metropolitan area for at least 3 months with the intent to remain for at least 6 more months. Males composed 64 percent of the sample. The questionnaire administered to all youth measured demographics, substance use, mental health, health-risk behaviors, and sexual orientation. 10 tables and 59 references