title: Congruence of Home, Social and Sex Neighborhoods among Men Who Have Sex with Men, NYCM2M Study.
abstract: Substantial literature demonstrates the influence of the neighborhood environment on health behaviors and outcomes. But limited research examines on how gay and bisexual men experience and exist in various geographic and virtual spaces and how this relates to their sexual behavior. New York City Men 2 Men (NYCM2M) was a cross-sectional study designed to identify neighborhood-level characteristics within the urban environment that influence sexual risk behaviors, substance use, and depression among men who have sex with men (MSM) living in NYC. The sample was recruited using a modified venue-based time-space sampling methodology and through select websites and mobile applications. Whether key neighborhoods of human activity, where a participant resided (termed home), socialized (termed social), or had sex most often (termed sex), were the same or different was evaluated. "Congruence" (or the sameness) of home, social, and most often sex neighborhood was reported by 17 % of men, while 30 % reported that none of their neighborhoods were the same. The largest group of men (39 %) reported that their home and sex neighborhoods were the same but their social neighborhood was different while 10 % reported that their home neighborhood was different than their social and sex neighborhood; 5 % men reported same home and social neighborhoods with a different sex neighborhood. Complete neighborhood incongruence was highest among men who were Black and/or Latino, had lower education and personal income levels, and had greater financial insecurity. In adjusted analysis, serodiscordant condomless anal intercourse and condomless anal intercourse with partners from the Internet or mobile applications were significantly associated with having the same social and sex (but not home) neighborhoods. Understanding the complexity of how different spaces and places relate to the health and sexual behavior of MSM is essential for focusing interventions to best reach various populations of interest.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Infectious Disease Prevention, Lindsley F. Kimball Research Institute, New York Blood Center, 310 E.67th Street, New York, NY, 10065, USA. bkoblin@nybloodcenter.org.
authors.forename: Beryl A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Koblin
authors.affiliation: Department of Behavioral and Community Health Sciences, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
authors.forename: James E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Egan
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Infectious Disease Prevention, Lindsley F. Kimball Research Institute, New York Blood Center, 310 E.67th Street, New York, NY, 10065, USA.
authors.forename: Vijay
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Nandi
authors.affiliation: College of Global Public Health, New York University, New York, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Jordan M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Sang
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, School of Medicine, University of California, Davis, Sacramento, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Magdalena
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cerdá
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Infectious Disease Prevention, Lindsley F. Kimball Research Institute, New York Blood Center, 310 E.67th Street, New York, NY, 10065, USA.|Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Hong-Van
authors.initials: HV
authors.lastname: Tieu
authors.affiliation: College of Global Public Health, New York University, New York, NY, USA.|Center for Drug Use and HIV Research, NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing, New York, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Danielle C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Ompad
authors.affiliation: Department of Statistics and Biostatistics and Institute for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ, USA.
authors.forename: Donald R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Hoover
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Lindsley F. Kimball Research Institute, New York Blood Center, New York, NY, USA.|Department of Community Health and Social Medicine, City College of New York, CUNY Medical School, City University of New York, New York, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Victoria
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Frye
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D018451:Homosexuality, Male / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009519:New York City; D012111:Residence Characteristics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012309:Risk-Taking; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: HIV; Neighborhoods; Risk behaviors