HIV testing among racial and ethnic minority adolescents living in an urban community

ABSTRACT

This study examined the factors that influence HIV testing among a sample of African American and Hispanic/Latino adolescents (N = 747) living in an economically disadvantaged community in the Northeastern United States. The majority of sexually active participants in our study (77%) have never been tested for HIV. However, youth engaging in risky sexual behaviors, interacting in positive peer networks, and having access to sources of prevention information were more likely to seek HIV testing services. Our findings underscore the importance of developing multifaceted HIV/AIDS prevention protocols that provide direct education and skill-building activities, leverage peer education as a means to disseminate health-related information, and deliver broad-based prevention messaging that is both culturally-tailored and gender-specific.

KEYWORDS:

• culturally-tailored and gender-specific prevention strategies
• HIV testing behaviors
• urban minority youth

Additional information

Funding

This article was prepared with the support of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP), Grant No. SP-15104. The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the position of the sponsoring agency.