Psychosocial Outcomes of Sexual Risk Reduction in a Brief Intervention for Urban African American Female Adolescents

Abstract

The authors describe psychosocial outcomes of a group randomized controlled trial of a friendship-based HIV/sexually transmitted infection (STI) prevention intervention grounded in the AIDS Risk Reduction Model (ARRM). A total of 264 African American adolescent girls were randomized to a single-session Project ÒRÉ HIV/STI prevention intervention or a nutrition/exercise health promotion intervention with their friendship group. At posttest, Project ÒRÉ participants scored higher on knowledge of HIV/STI prevention and protection (p < .01), knowledge of living with HIV/STI (p < .01), perceived HIV risk (p < .05), perceived STI risk (p < .01), and intentions to use condoms for vaginal sex (p < .05). Findings suggest that a brief friendship-based HIV/STI prevention intervention for youth can impact ARRM factors that increase the ability to recognize and label risky sexual behaviors as problematic and promote commitment to changing high-risk behaviors.

KEYWORDS:

• African Americans
• adolescents
• AIDS Risk Reduction Model
• HIV/STI prevention

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The Adolescent Medicine Trials Network for HIV/AIDS Interventions (ATN) is funded by Grant No. U01 HD40506-01 from the National Institutes of Health through the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (Bill Kappogianis, MD; Sonia Lee, PhD) with supplemental funding from the National Institutes on Drug Abuse (Nicolette Borek, PhD) and Mental Health (Susannah Allison, PhD; Pim Brouwers, PhD). We thank Audrey Rogers, PhD, NICHD (retired) for her guidance. We thank Anna-Barbara Moscicki, MD of the San Francisco Adolescent Trials Unit and the staff of the Project ORE Research Team, including Heneliaka Jones, BS. This study was scientifically reviewed by the ATN's Behavioral Leadership Group. We also thank individuals from the ATN Data and Operations Center (Westat, Inc.) including Gayle Selkin-Guttman, MA, and individuals from the ATN Coordinating Center at the University of Alabama, including Craig Wilson, MD; Cindy Partlow, MEd; and Marcia Berck, BA. We acknowledge the thoughtful input given by participants of our national and local Youth Community Advisory Boards. Finally, we thank the youth who participated in the program and the community-based organizations and leaders who enhanced our ability to conduct this work. Dr. Dolcini was on faculty at the University of California, San Francisco when this study was conducted. Manuscript preparation was supported in part by RO1 HD061027(PI, Dolcini).

Notes

*p ≤ .05. See Dolcini et al. (2010) for descriptions of additional baseline characteristics.

*The p value for the Intervention Group vs. Control Group difference derived from regressing the variable on group and is based on robust standard errors calculated to accommodate clustering by friendship group (as defined by the index case). Dichotomous variables required logistic regression instead of linear regression.

^a Percent worried or very worried.

^b The condom attitude items were inadvertently excluded from the preintervention instrument administered to 33 Intervention Group participants.

^c Percent always use condoms.

^d Percent somewhat likely or very likely.

*The p value is for the Intervention Group vs. Control Group difference derived from regressing the variable on group and is based on robust standard errors calculated to accommodate clustering by friendship group (as defined by the index case). Dichotomous variables required logistic regression instead of linear regression.

^a Percent worried or very worried.

^b Percent always use condoms.

^c Percent somewhat likely or very likely.

^d Sexually inactive excluded.