TY - JOUR
T1 - Anticipated HIV stigma among HIV negative men who have sex with men in China
T2 - A cross-sectional study
AU - Liu, Chuncheng
AU - Zhang, Ye
AU - Pan, Stephen W.
AU - Cao, Bolin
AU - Ong, Jason J.
AU - Fu, Hongyun
AU - Wu, Dan
AU - Fu, Rong
AU - Wei, Chongyi
AU - Tucker, Joseph D.
AU - Tang, Weiming
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2017YFE0103800), Academy of Medical Sciences and the Newton Fund (Grant number NIF\R1\181020), the National Institutes of Health (NIAID 1R01AI114310–01, NIAID K24AI143471), UNC Center for AIDS Research (NIAID 5P30AI050410), NIMH (R34MH119963), National Science and Technology Major Project (2018ZX10101–001–001-003), the National Nature Science Foundation of China (81903371). The listed grant funders played no role in any step of this study.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 The Author(s).
PY - 2020/1/15
Y1 - 2020/1/15
N2 - Background: Anticipated HIV stigma, i.e., the expectation of adverse experiences from one's seroconversion, is associated with both negative psychological and behavioral outcomes. We know little about anticipated HIV stigma's relationship with emerging technologies, such as HIV self-testing (HIVST) and online sex-seeking platforms, that have become popular among populations that are disproportionately affected by HIV/AIDS. This study examined correlates of anticipated HIV stigma among Chinese men who have sex with men (MSM). Methods: In July 2016, MSM, who were ≥ 16 years old and self-reported as HIV negative or unknown, were recruited from a gay mobile phone application in China. Information regarding socio-demographics, sexual behaviors, sexual health service utilization, and anticipated HIV stigma were collected. Anticipated HIV stigma (i.e., negative attitude toward future stigmatization of HIV seroconversion by others) was measured as the mean score from a 7-item Likert-scale ranging from 1 (low) to 4 (high). Generalized linear models were conducted to examine the factors associated with the anticipated HIV stigma scores. Results: Overall, 2006 men completed the survey. Most men completed high school (1308/2006, 65.2%) and had an annual personal income of ≤9200 USD (1431/2006, 71.3%). The mean anticipated HIV stigma score for the participants was 2.98 ± 0.64. Using social media to seek sexual partners was associated with higher anticipated HIV stigma (Adjusted β = 0.11, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.05 to 0.17, p = 0.001). HIV self-testing (Adjusted β =-0.07, 95%CI:-0.13 to-0.01, p = 0.02) and having disclosed one's sexual orientation to a healthcare provider (Adjusted β =-0.16, 95%CI:-0.22 to-0.96, p < 0.001) were associated with lower anticipated HIV stigma. Conclusion: Our data suggested that anticipated HIV stigma is still common among Chinese MSM not living with HIV. Tailored anti-HIV stigma campaigns on social media are especially needed, and the promotion of HIVST may be a promising approach.
AB - Background: Anticipated HIV stigma, i.e., the expectation of adverse experiences from one's seroconversion, is associated with both negative psychological and behavioral outcomes. We know little about anticipated HIV stigma's relationship with emerging technologies, such as HIV self-testing (HIVST) and online sex-seeking platforms, that have become popular among populations that are disproportionately affected by HIV/AIDS. This study examined correlates of anticipated HIV stigma among Chinese men who have sex with men (MSM). Methods: In July 2016, MSM, who were ≥ 16 years old and self-reported as HIV negative or unknown, were recruited from a gay mobile phone application in China. Information regarding socio-demographics, sexual behaviors, sexual health service utilization, and anticipated HIV stigma were collected. Anticipated HIV stigma (i.e., negative attitude toward future stigmatization of HIV seroconversion by others) was measured as the mean score from a 7-item Likert-scale ranging from 1 (low) to 4 (high). Generalized linear models were conducted to examine the factors associated with the anticipated HIV stigma scores. Results: Overall, 2006 men completed the survey. Most men completed high school (1308/2006, 65.2%) and had an annual personal income of ≤9200 USD (1431/2006, 71.3%). The mean anticipated HIV stigma score for the participants was 2.98 ± 0.64. Using social media to seek sexual partners was associated with higher anticipated HIV stigma (Adjusted β = 0.11, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.05 to 0.17, p = 0.001). HIV self-testing (Adjusted β =-0.07, 95%CI:-0.13 to-0.01, p = 0.02) and having disclosed one's sexual orientation to a healthcare provider (Adjusted β =-0.16, 95%CI:-0.22 to-0.96, p < 0.001) were associated with lower anticipated HIV stigma. Conclusion: Our data suggested that anticipated HIV stigma is still common among Chinese MSM not living with HIV. Tailored anti-HIV stigma campaigns on social media are especially needed, and the promotion of HIVST may be a promising approach.
KW - Anticipated HIV stigma
KW - HIV self-testing
KW - Men who have sex with men
KW - Online sex-seeking, disclosure
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/85077941904
U2 - 10.1186/s12879-020-4778-5
DO - 10.1186/s12879-020-4778-5
M3 - Article
C2 - 31941445
AN - SCOPUS:85077941904
SN - 1471-2334
VL - 20
JO - BMC Infectious Diseases
JF - BMC Infectious Diseases
IS - 1
M1 - 44
ER -