title: Examining the Relationships Between Religiosity, Spirituality, Internalized Homonegativity, and Condom Use Among African American Men Who Have Sex With Men in the Deep South.
abstract: The Sexual Health in Faith Traditions Study evaluated the relationships between religiosity, spirituality, internalized homonegativity, and sexual risk behaviors among a sample of African American men who have sex with men living in the Deep South. Participants were recruited primarily from Black Gay Pride celebrations to complete a self-administered, paper-and-pencil survey. Structural equation modeling was used to determine relationships between key constructs and condom use for insertive ( n = 285) and receptive ( n = 263) anal intercourse in the past 3 months. Almost half of respondents reported using condoms "every time" when engaging in insertive (48.3%) or receptive (45.1%) anal intercourse. Religiosity and spirituality were differentially associated with dimensions of internalized homonegativity. While no significant direct relationships were reported between either religiosity or spirituality and condom use, dimensions of internalized homonegativity mediated significant indirect relationships. Findings suggest that religiosity and spirituality influence African American men who have sex with men's internalized homonegativity and, subsequently, engagement in safer sex behaviors.
authors.affiliation: 1 Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, GA, USA.
authors.forename: Stacy W
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Smallwood
authors.affiliation: 2 University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA.
authors.forename: S Melinda
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Spencer
authors.affiliation: 2 University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA.
authors.forename: Lucy Annang
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Ingram
authors.affiliation: 2 University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA.
authors.forename: Jim F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Thrasher
authors.affiliation: 3 University of Nevada-Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV, USA.
authors.forename: Melva V
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: Thompson-Robinson
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology*; D001294:Attitude to Health / Q000208:ethnology*; D017280:Condoms / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003674:Defense Mechanisms; D018451:Homosexuality, Male / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012067:Religion; D015144:Southeastern United States; D029181:Spirituality; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: African American MSM; condom use; internalized homonegativity; religiosity; spirituality