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Contrasting the Perceived Severity of COVID-19 and HIV Infection in an Online Survey of Gay, Bisexual, and Other Men Who Have Sex With Men During the U.S. COVID-19 Epidemic.
- Source :
-
American journal of men's health [Am J Mens Health] 2020 Sep-Oct; Vol. 14 (5), pp. 1557988320957545. - Publication Year :
- 2020
-
Abstract
- While there is evidence of variations in the risk perceptions of COVID-19 and that they are linked to both engagement in health-protective behaviors and poor mental health outcomes, there has been a lack of attention to how individuals perceive the risk of COVID-19 relative to other infectious diseases. This paper examines the relative perceptions of the severity of COVID-19 and HIV among a sample of U.S. gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (GBMSMs). The "Love and Sex in the Time of COVID-19" survey was conducted online from April 2020 to May 2020. GBMSMs were recruited through paid banner advertisements featured on social networking platforms, resulting in a sample size of 696. The analysis considers differences in responses to two scales: the Perceived Severity of HIV Infection and the Perceived Severity of COVID-19 Infection. Participants perceived greater seriousness for HIV infection (mean 46.67, range 17-65) than for COVID-19 infection (mean 38.81, range 13-62). Some items reflecting more proximal impacts of infection (anxiety, loss of sleep, and impact on employment) were similar for HIV and COVID-19. Those aged over 25 and those who perceived higher prevalence of COVID-19 in the United States or their state were more likely to report COVID-19 as more severe than HIV. There is a need to develop nuanced public health messages for GBMSMs that convey the ongoing simultaneous health threats of both HIV and COVID-19.
- Subjects :
- Adolescent
Adult
Aged
Bisexuality statistics & numerical data
COVID-19
Cross-Sectional Studies
Female
Humans
Incidence
Internet
Male
Middle Aged
Pandemics
Risk Assessment
Severity of Illness Index
Sexual Behavior
Survival Analysis
United States epidemiology
Young Adult
Coronavirus Infections epidemiology
Ethnicity statistics & numerical data
HIV Infections epidemiology
Homosexuality, Male statistics & numerical data
Pneumonia, Viral epidemiology
Risk-Taking
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 1557-9891
- Volume :
- 14
- Issue :
- 5
- Database :
- MEDLINE
- Journal :
- American journal of men's health
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 32938298
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1177/1557988320957545