Journal Article

Drug use Discrimination Predicts Formation of High-Risk Social Networks: Examining Social Pathways of Discrimination

Crawford, Natalie D., Rudolph, Abby, Ford, Chandra, Lewis, Crystal M., Kim, BoRin

2017

Overview

Experiences of discrimination, or social marginalization and ostracism, may lead to the formation of social networks characterized by inequality. For example, those who experience discrimination may be more likely to develop drug use and sexual partnerships with others who are at increased risk for HIV compared to those without experiences of discrimination. This is critical as engaging in risk behaviors with others who are more likely to be HIV positive can increase one’s risk of HIV. We used log-binomial regression models to examine the relationship between drug use, racial and incarceration discrimination with changes in the composition of one’s risk network among 502 persons who use drugs. We examined both absolute and proportional changes with respect to sex partners, drug use partners, and injecting partners, after accounting for individual risk behaviors. At baseline, participants were predominately male (70%), black or Latino (91%), un-married (85%), and used crack (64%). Among those followed-up (67%), having experienced discrimination due to drug use was significantly related to increases in the absolute number of sex networks and drug networks over time. No types of discrimination were related to changes in the proportion of high-risk network members. Discrimination may increase one’s risk of HIV acquisition by leading them to preferentially form risk relationships with higher-risk individuals, thereby perpetuating racial and ethnic inequities in HIV. Future social network studies and behavioral interventions should consider whether social discrimination plays a role in HIV transmission.

• Publisher: Springer US,Springer Nature B.V
• Subject: Acquired immune deficiency syndrome / Adult / AIDS / Changes / Crack cocaine / Discrimination / Discrimination (Psychology) / Disease transmission / Drug abuse / Drug use / Drug Users - psychology / Drug Users - statistics & numerical data / Drugs / Ethnic Groups - psychology / Ethnic Groups - statistics & numerical data / Ethnicity / Female / Health Psychology / High risk / HIV / HIV Infections - ethnology / HIV Infections - etiology / HIV Infections - transmission / Human immunodeficiency virus / Humans / Imprisonment / Inequality / Infectious Diseases / Interpersonal Relations / Male / Marginality / Medicine / Medicine & Public Health / Original Paper / Partnerships / Prevalence / Prospective Studies / Public Health / Racial discrimination / Racism - psychology / Racism - statistics & numerical data / Regression analysis / Risk / Risk behavior / Risk-Taking / Sex / Sexism / Sexual behavior / Sexual Partners / Sexually transmitted diseases / Social factors / Social inequality / Social interactions / Social Networking / Social networks / Social organization / Social Support / Socioeconomic Factors / STD / Substance Abuse, Intravenous - ethnology / Substance Abuse, Intravenous - psychology / Substance-Related Disorders - complications / Substance-Related Disorders - ethnology / Young Adult