Psychosocial Constructs Associated with Condom Use Among High-Risk African American Men Newly Diagnosed with a Sexually Transmitted Disease

BACKGROUND: African American men are disproportionately burdened by the US AIDS epidemic. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine associations between condom-related psychosocial constructs and condom use among a sample of young, heterosexual, African American men newly diagnosed with a sexually transmitted disease. METHODS: This cross-sectional study collected data from 266 men. Predictors included seven scale measures and 12 covariates. Unadjusted odds ratios were estimated followed by multivariable logistic regression. RESULTS: Nearly one half (47.7%) used condoms at last sex. Five of the psychosocial measures had significant bivariate associations with condom use (p < 0.05). Specific attitudes toward condom use and partner-related barriers retained multivariable significance. Changes of one standard deviation in these measures increased the estimated odds of condom use by 40% (p = 0.021) and 55% (p = 0.002), respectively. CONCLUSION: Specific attitudes toward condom use and partner-related barriers may be particularly important constructs to consider when designing behavioral interventions for high-risk, heterosexual, African American men.