To Use or Not Use Condoms? Gay, Bi, Queer Teen Guys Tell Us

In light of International Condom Day, our new infographic showcases quotes from our online discussion with gay, bisexual, and queer teen guys on condom use.

Young men who have sex with men are among the groups with the fastest growing rates of new cases of HIV [1]. Therefore, encouraging gay, bisexual, and queer (GBQ)-identifying teenage men to use condoms is an important preventive step.

As part of our formative work to develop a salient healthy sexuality program for GBQ young men [2], we held an online discussion with 75 GBQ teenagers. Their resulting feedback shed insight on the types of their challenges that they faced in getting and using condoms, as well as some of the reasons why they choose to use or not use condoms. In light of International Condom Day on February 13th [3], which promotes the use of condoms to prevent sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV, we have highlighted some of their quotes in our new infographic:

int-l-condom-day

To read our other blog posts on the same study with GBQ teenage men, check out: Talking Online Can Be Life Changing for Sexual Minority Guys and Why Aren’t Gay, Bi, Queer Teen Guys Getting Tested For HIV?

Learn more about our research at Center for Innovative Public Health Research.

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Acknowledgments:

This infographic is based on our publication in partnership with The IMPACT LGBT Health and Development Program at Northwestern University: Mustanski B, DuBois LZ, Prescott TL, Ybarra ML. A mixed-methods study of condom use and decision making among adolescent gay and bisexual males. AIDS Behav. 2014;18(10):1955-1969.

Thank you to Emilie Chen for her contributions to this blog.

References:

[1] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. HIV Among Gay and Bisexual Men. 2015; http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/group/msm/

[2] Ybarra ML, Prescott TL, Phillips II GL, Bull SS, Parsons JT, Mustanski B. Iteratively developing an mHealth HIV prevention program for sexual minority adolescent men. AIDS Behav. Published online August 4, 2015. doi: 10.1007/s10461-015-1146-3

[3] International Condom Day. AIDS Healthcare Foundation. 2016; http://www.useacondom.com/icd-2015/