Sexual risk-taking in gay men: the relevance of sexual arousability, mood, and sensation seeking.
This paper examined the relationship of three aspects of personality to sexual risk-taking in gay men: (1). sexual arousability, as propensity for sexual excitation, and propensity for inhibition of sexual arousal in the face of threat (measured by the Sexual Excitation, SES, and Sexual Inhibition, SIS1, SIS2, scales); (2). the relation between negative mood and sexuality; and (3). sensation seeking. Risk-taking was assessed for the past 6 months in relation to unprotected anal intercourse (UAI), oral sex, number of casual partners, and patterns of cruising behavior. A combination of number of partners and use of condoms was used to derive a "longer-term risk" grouping. Two patterns of association were identified. UAI and high risk oral sex were more likely in those with low inhibition of sexual response due to "threat of performance consequences" (i.e., low SIS2) and low trait anxiety (low STAI). High numbers of casual partners and frequent cruising were associated with increased sexual interest in states of depression and high propensity for sexual excitation (SES). Higher "long-term risk" was also associated with low SIS2. Unexpectedly, high SIS1, which is strongly related to vulnerability to erectile failure, was also predictive of higher long-term risk. Possible reasons for this are discussed. Disinhibition from the Sensation Seeking Scales was a positive predictor of all types of sexual risk assessed. All three aspects of personality are of potential relevance to designing better interventions to reduce high risk sexual behavior and in evaluating their effectiveness.
The Kinsey Institute, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47401-3700, USA. jbancrof@indiana.edu
John
J
Bancroft
Erick
E
Janssen
David
D
Strong
Lori
L
Carnes
Zoran
Z
Vukadinovic
J Scott
JS
Long
D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect; D000368:Aged; D001007:Anxiety / Q000523:psychology; D001143:Arousal; D003075:Coitus / Q000523:psychology*; D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology; D018451:Homosexuality, Male / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010410:Penile Erection / Q000523:psychology; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011581:Psychological Tests; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012309:Risk-Taking; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012747:Sexual Partners / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors