Sexual behavior among HIV-positive men who have sex with men: what's in a label?
Relatively little attention has been paid to the use and importance of labels used by men who have sex with men to describe insertive or receptive sexual behavior during intercourse. This study examines sexual self-labels, sexual behavior, HIV transmission risk, and psychological functioning among 205 HIV-seropositive men who have sex with men. The majority of participants (88%) identified as a  top,  a  bottom,  or  versatile.  Tops were more likely to engage in insertive anal intercourse than bottoms, and bottoms were more likely to engage in receptive anal intercourse than tops, with versatiles reporting intermediate rates of both behaviors. Although the results suggest preliminary evidence regarding the predictive utility of self-labels, sexual behaviors of self-label groups were greatly overlapping. Differences were found among self-label groups in gay self-identification, internalized homophobia, sexual sensation seeking, and anxiety. Results suggest an added value in assessing self-labels in addition to asking about sexual behavior.
Hart
Trevor A
TA
Behavioral Intervention Research Branch, Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention, National Center for HIV, STD, and TB Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Road, Mail Stop E-37, Atlanta, GA 30333, USA. Thart@cdc.gov.
Wolitski
Richard J
RJ
Purcell
David W
DW
Gómez
Cynthia
C
Halkitis
Perry
P
D003710:Demography; D006679:HIV Seropositivity / Q000523:psychology* / Q000635:transmission; D018451:Homosexuality, Male / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D012307:Risk Factors; D012747:Sexual Partners