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  • Title: Sexual behavior patterns of gay university men: implications for preventing HIV infection.
    Author: D'Augelli AR.
    Journal: J Am Coll Health; 1992 Jul; 41(1):25-9. PubMed ID: 1506566.
    Abstract:
    Gay male university students less than 25 years old were studied to determine whether they had changed their sexual activity patterns to reduce the risk of HIV infection. Most had not established sexual behavior patterns typical of the older gay men who had been studied in earlier research. Although most of the participants surveyed were concerned about HIV infection, some did engage in risky sexual behavior. The risk-reduction strategies most often used were having fewer sexual partners and being more selective in choosing partners. Future HIV-prevention interventions must be designed to address the needs of this generation of gay men. Compared to older cohorts of gay adults, gay males under age 25 have grown up in a society generally more tolerant of homosexuality, yet plagued with the pandemic of AIDS. While these youths may feel comparatively free to acknowledge their sexual identities both personally and publicly, one may also assume that AIDS has prompted them to engage in few high-risk sexual activities compared to older sexually active homosexuals. Most published AIDS research studies targeted to homosexual communities have explored sexual behavior in gay males aged 25-45. Concentrating upon men over 25, however, has most likely caused oversampling of men who are most open with sexuality and publicly involved in local gay communities. Older men are likely to have had comparatively more sexual partners and more frequent lifetime sexual experiences. Gay men underage 25 have been extremely undersampled. As such, virtually no AIDs prevention data are available about younger men and adolescent boys, despite mounting evidence of physical and mental health problem among gay teens. This paper examines the degree of safer sex practice and the variability of sexual behavior in 61 self-defined university gay males of average age 21 years. Study data come from responses to 200 22-page surveys distributed in fall 1989 at a large mid-Atlantic state university. Of the 32/61 who had engaged in anal sex, with an average 4 partners and 23 cumulative experiences, 1/2 reported not using a condom at least once. For the sample, 1-27 condoms were used per month. Of those reporting sex in college, 7% became celibate, 14% stopped anal intercourse, 52% decreased the number of partners, 57% were more careful in choosing partners, and 36% refused sex without condoms. Of those having more than 1 sexual partner in the previous year, 26% used condoms with all partners, while 31% did not use condoms with any partner. Only 8%, however, were untroubled by worries of HIV infection. Most respondents had no direct contact with HIV illness, but were aware of the importance of taking precautions to prevent against HIV infection. Far less risky sex was reported among these student compared to that reported by older men in earlier studies. Considerable variability was also noted in the sexual activities of respondents, with over 25% reporting no homosexual contact and 15% having heterosexual activities while in college. Among those sexually active, more had engaged in oral sex compared to anal sex with men. High condom breakage rates were also cited among this cohort. While the pattern of respondents' reported sexual activities differ from that of older studied cohorts, and most had changed behavior to help prevent against HIV infection, gay males under age 25 could certainly benefit from targeted prevention interventions. Intervention is especially called for when on considers the probability of comparatively higher proportions of risky behavior among closeted gay youths. More research is needed with larger samples of young gay men.
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