Differential Risk for Drug Use by Sexual Minority Status among Electronic Dance Music Party Attendees in New York City

Abstract

Background: Drug use among electronic dance music (EDM) party attendees is common; however, studies are needed to examine associations between drug use and sexual orientation as this can inform prevention and harm reduction efforts in the lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) community. Methods: Data were examined from a repeated cross-sectional study of 3066 young adult EDM party attendees surveyed entering nightclubs and dance festivals in New York City between 2016 and 2018. Of these participants, 277 identified as gay/lesbian, 293 identified as bisexual, and 83 identified as other sexuality. We examined how sexual orientation relates to past-year use of various ‘traditional’ drugs (e.g., ecstasy/MDMA/Molly) and new psychoactive substances (NPS; e.g., “bath salts”) in a bivariable and multivariable manner, stratified by sex. Results: Compared to heterosexual males, gay males were at higher odds for use of ecstasy, GHB, and methamphetamine; bisexual males were at higher odds for use of LSD and unknown powders, and males identifying as “other” sexuality were at higher odds for use of mushrooms and 2C drugs. Compared to heterosexual females, lesbians were at higher odds for use of mushrooms and GHB; bisexual females were at higher odds for use of cocaine, LSD, mushrooms, and tryptamines, and females identifying as “other” sexuality were at higher odds for use of cocaine and tryptamines. Conclusions: We determined differential risk of use of different drugs among those who attend EDM parties according to sexual orientation. Findings can be used to tailor prevention messaging to specific groups within the LGB community.

Keywords:

• Sexual orientation
• drug use
• electronic dance music
• new psychoactive substances

Acknowledgments

The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

Disclosure statement

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the article.

Additional information

Funding

Research reported in this publication was supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health under Award Numbers K01DA038800 (PI: Palamar) and R01DA044207 (PI: Palamar). This study was funded by Foundation for the National Institutes of Health.