Guy2Guy
Adolescent men who have sex with men (AMSM) are facing increasing incidence of HIV and account for almost 70% of new HIV diagnoses among young people in the US, with most transmission occurring through condomless sex. At the same time, the majority of prevention programs focus primarily on adults. The majority of program that are tailored to youth are heterosexual focused.
To fill this gap, we developed Guy2Guy (G2G), a text messaging-based HIV prevention program tailored to the unique needs of adolescent men 14-18 years of age across the US. Content was developed iteratively, including focus groups, a Content Advisory Team, and a beta test. The program is comprised of six weeks of text messaging content guided by the Information-Motivation-Behavior (IMB) model. Topics include: HIV transmission and prevention information, social norms about HIV prevention and attitudes toward condom use, correct condom use steps, HIV testing, communication skills, and healthy and unhealthy relationships. In addition to receiving messages aimed at increasing safe sex behavior, intervention participants also had real-time access to peer-based support (i.e., a Text Buddy) and on-demand information about HIV-prevention related topics, such as how to end a relationship healthfully (i.e., G2Genie). The program was evaluated for feasibility and acceptability, along with preliminary indications of efficacy in a pilot randomized controlled trial conducted with over 300 AMSM.
This study was conducted in partnership with the IMPACT Program at Northwestern University.
Funding Sources:Project Videos
Media Mentions
Presentations
- Intervention-end outcomes for Guy2Guy, a text messaging-based HIV prevention program for gay, bisexual, and queer adolescent men
- Drawing upon successes in other fields to inform opportunities for technology-based mental health promotion
- Using online focus groups to tailor a text-message based HIV-prevention project to meet the needs of adolescent MSM
- Tailoring HIV-prevention to meet the needs of gay, bisexual, and queer adolescent males: Online focus groups as an innovative tool for participatory research
Peer Reviewed Publications
- Feasibility, acceptability, and process indicators for Guy2Guy, an mHealth HIV prevention program for sexual minority adolescent boys
- The effect of a text messaging based HIV prevention program on sexual minority male youths: A national evaluation of information, motivation and behavioral skills in a randomized controlled trial of Guy2Guy
- Pilot RCT results of an mHealth HIV prevention program for sexual minority male adolescents
- Reaching adolescent gay, bisexual, and queer men online: Development and refinement of a national recruitment strategy
Study Instruments
- Phase 1. Focus Group 1 – Bulletin board moderator script (Sexually Experienced group)
- Phase 1. Focus Group 1 – Bulletin board moderator script (Sexually Inexperienced group)
- Phase 1. Focus Group 2 – Bulletin board moderator script (Sexually Experienced group)
- Phase 1. Focus Group 2 – Bulletin board moderator script (Sexually Inexperienced group)
- Phase 1. Focus Groups – Informed Assent Form