Condom use in young blacks and Hispanics in public STD clinics.
OBJECTIVE
Young blacks and Hispanics are an emerging risk group for contracting HIV. The goal of this study was to assess the most salient correlates of condom use for young Hispanics and blacks in Los Angeles county sexually transmitted diseases (STD) clinics as a first step toward designing a short clinic-based intervention.


METHODS
Face-to-face interviews were conducted with 376 patients younger than the age of 27 years at six STD clinics operated by the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services. Assessment included several attitudinal variables and AIDS risk behaviors.


RESULTS
Condom use at last intercourse ranged from 40% among Hispanic females to 48% among black males. Among females, condom users were more likely to report high self-efficacy regarding condom use, peer norms supporting condom use, and more sexual communication than respondents who did not use a condom at last intercourse. Among males, no relationship was found between condom use at last intercourse and these attitudinal variables, except for sexual communication. The most important correlate of condom use among males and females was the frequency of carrying condoms.


CONCLUSIONS
Our findings suggest that offering educational group sessions and attractive means for carrying condoms to patients in STD clinics may have the potential to increase condom use. The efficacy of these intervention strategies should be explored in future studies.
Maxwell
A E
AE
University of California Los Angeles School of Public Health and Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, Los Angeles, USA.
Bastani
R
R
Warda
U S
US
D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017280:Condoms / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D015141:Los Angeles / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D012309:Risk-Taking; D012737:Sex Factors; D012749:Sexually Transmitted Diseases / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires