title: Putting prevention in their pockets: developing mobile phone-based HIV interventions for black men who have sex with men.
abstract: Young black men who have sex with men (MSM) bear a disproportionate burden of HIV. Rapid expansion of mobile technologies, including smartphone applications (apps), provides a unique opportunity for outreach and tailored health messaging. We collected electronic daily journals and conducted surveys and focus groups with 22 black MSM (age 18-30) at three sites in North Carolina to inform the development of a mobile phone-based intervention. Qualitative data was analyzed thematically using NVivo. Half of the sample earned under $11,000 annually. All participants owned smartphones and had unlimited texting and many had unlimited data plans. Phones were integral to participants' lives and were a primary means of Internet access. Communication was primarily through text messaging and Internet (on-line chatting, social networking sites) rather than calls. Apps were used daily for entertainment, information, productivity, and social networking. Half of participants used their phones to find sex partners; over half used phones to find health information. For an HIV-related app, participants requested user-friendly content about test site locators, sexually transmitted diseases, symptom evaluation, drug and alcohol risk, safe sex, sexuality and relationships, gay-friendly health providers, and connection to other gay/HIV-positive men. For young black MSM in this qualitative study, mobile technologies were a widely used, acceptable means for HIV intervention. Future research is needed to measure patterns and preferences of mobile technology use among broader samples.
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599, USA. kmuessig@med.unc.edu
authors.forename: Kathryn E
authors.initials: KE
authors.lastname: Muessig
authors.forename: Emily C
authors.initials: EC
authors.lastname: Pike
authors.forename: Beth
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Fowler
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: LeGrand
authors.forename: Jeffrey T
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Parsons
authors.forename: Sheana S
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Bull
authors.forename: Patrick A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Wilson
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Wohl
authors.forename: Lisa B
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Hightow-Weidman
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D044383:Black People / Q000523:psychology; D040421:Cell Phone; D017144:Focus Groups; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000208:ethnology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D018451:Homosexuality, Male / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D008297:Male; D009657:North Carolina; D011322:Primary Prevention / Q000379:methods*; D036301:Qualitative Research; D012309:Risk-Taking; D021841:Safe Sex; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D060145:Text Messaging; D055815:Young Adult; D001741:Black or African American
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