Psychosocial Correlates of HIV Testing Frequency Among Men Who Have Sex with Men in Guangzhou, China

• Published in: AIDS and behavior Vol. 24; no. 2; pp. 363 - 372
• Main Authors: Cheng, Weibin, Egan, James E., Liu, Qi, Xu, Huifang, Stall, Ron, Friedman, Mackey R.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01-02-2020; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; China; Cross-Sectional Studies; Disclosure; Friendship; Gays & lesbians; Health Psychology; HIV; HIV Infections - diagnosis; HIV Infections - epidemiology; HIV Infections - psychology; Homophobia; Homosexuality, Male - psychology; Homosexuality, Male - statistics & numerical data; Human immunodeficiency virus; Humans; Income; Infectious Diseases; Male; Mass Screening - statistics & numerical data; Medical tests; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Men who have sex with men; Mens health; Middle Aged; Original Paper; Psychosocial factors; Public Health; Serologic Tests - statistics & numerical data; Sexual behavior; Sexual orientation; Sexual Partners; Sexually transmitted diseases; Social Class; Sociodemographics; STD; Young Adult; China; HIV testing; Frequency; China; MSM; Psychosocial factors
• ISSN: 1090-7165; 1573-3254
• DOI: 10.1007/s10461-019-02431-w

We examined sociodemographic and psychosocial factors associated with HIV testing patterns in the past 2 years among 492 HIV-negative men who have sex men (MSM) at an HIV testing center in Guangzhou, China. MSM who tested for HIV frequently were more likely to be older, reside in Guangzhou, and have higher monthly income. Compared with MSM who tested frequently, MSM who never tested were less likely to report that their sexual partner(s) had ever received HIV tests or that their good friends had ever received HIV tests, and were less likely to report having an HIV-positive gay friend or ever discussing HIV with sexual partners; they were more likely to report perceiving barriers to HIV testing. Compared with MSM who tested frequently, those who tested irregularly were less likely to report having HIV-positive gay friends or to disclose their sexual orientation to non-gay friends; reported greater barriers to HIV testing; and higher internalized homophobia.