As the mechanisms of the
associations between substance use and risky sex remain unclear, this study
investigates the interactive roles of conflicts about casual sex and condom use
and expectancies of the sexual effects of substances in those associations
among gay men.
Conflict interacted with expectancies to predict sexual behavior
under the influence; low casual sex conflict coupled with high expectancies
predicted the highest number of casual partners, and high condom use conflict
and high expectancies predicted the highest number of unprotected sex acts.
Results
have implications for intervention efforts that aim to improve sexual
decision-making and reduce sexual expectancies.
...Each kind of conflict
interacted uniquely with expectancies to predict sexual behavior under the
influence. Contrary to our hypothesis, men who were low in casual sex conflict
and high in expectancies reported the highest number of casual partners under the
influence. For conflict about condom use, however, men who were both high on
condom use conflict and high in expectancies tended to be in the highest risk
group, which was consistent with our hypothesis. Practically, it seems that
conflict about casual sex may lead men to avoid casual sex when they are under
the influence of drugs or alcohol. However, men who were conflicted about
unprotected sex may still engage in casual sex but be more likely to succumb to
the influence of substances (and/or their expectations of substances’ effects)
to ultimately engage in risk behavior. In short, men who were high in conflict
about condom use seemed to be especially sensitive to the effect of
expectancies. Though a causal mechanism cannot be determined from cross-sectional
data, these results suggest that there may be a causal mechanism in the
association between substance use and sexual risk behavior, though other
psychosexual and contextual factors may moderate this association. These
findings are consistent with research indicating that self-regulation is
important in balancing the effects of sexual sensation seeking on unprotected
sex but not in the association between sensation seeking and the number of
casual sex partners (Adam et al., 2008)...
Below: (a) Casual sex conflict × expectancies and (b) unsafe sex conflict × expectancies
Full article at: http://goo.gl/6ubw4X
By:
1Center for HIV/AIDS Educational Studies
and Training (CHEST), New York, NY, USA
2Department of Psychology, Hunter College
of the City University of New York (CUNY), New York, NY, USA
Corresponding author: Sarit Golub, Department of Psychology,
Hunter College, The City University of New York (CUNY), 695 Park Avenue, New
York, NY 10065, USA. Email: ude.ynuc.retnuh@bulog.tiras
More at: https://twitter.com/hiv_insight
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