title: Risky sexual behavior among young adult Latinas: are acculturation and religiosity protective?
abstract: A sexual health disparity exists among U.S. Latinas, who have rates of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) that are more than double their peers. Previous research has identified acculturation and religiosity as key social determinants of sexual health, but such findings have been inconsistent, with some researchers identifying protective benefits and other researchers noting increased risk. The purpose of this study was to explain how intrinsic and extrinsic religiosity as well as acculturation predict risky sexual behavior using Structural Equation Modeling of a nationally representative sample of self-identified Latinas (N=1,168) from the National Longitudinal Survey of Adolescent Health. Results indicated that intrinsic religiosity and acculturation assert protective effects while extrinsic religiosity increases risk. Recommendations for policy, intervention, and future research are offered.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Sociology, Anthropology, Social Work, and Criminal Justice , Oakland University.
authors.forename: Scott James
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Smith
mesh_terms: D000069:Acculturation; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000208:ethnology*; D006801:Humans; D012069:Religion and Psychology; D012309:Risk-Taking; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000208:ethnology*; D055815:Young Adult