Abstract
Despite mounting evidence supporting the benefits of condom use in decreasing the risk of HIV infections, condom use has been reportedly low in the Philippines. The objective of the study was to determine which constructs of the Health Belief Model could efficiently predict the utilization of condoms, using structural equation modeling. Purposive sampling within the Philippine gay and bisexual men (GBM) community resulted to a sample of 471 Filipino GBM producing a condom use model (R2=0.08) with perceived benefits (β = 0.154), perceived susceptibility (β = 0.105), self-efficacy (β = 0.091), and perceived severity (β = 0.084) as most predictive of condom use (p < 0.05).
Disclosure statement
The author reports no conflict of interest. The author alone is responsible for the content and writing of the paper.