The Inescapable Effects of Parent Support on Black Males and HIV Testing

Focusing on parental communication is a promising way to extend the reach of HIV-related interventions and prevention programs to underserved adolescents and their families in the US. One highly relevant population in need of services is Black males who constitute more than one-third of all new HIV infection cases in the US. We sought to determine whether the family context (i.e., parent support, parent relationships) impacted HIV testing over time. For this study, we used the first and third waves of the Add Health restricted dataset from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health of Black males (average age 16.1 years). Descriptive statistics found that over 75% of the sample had never been tested for HIV/AIDS, while only 58% reported using a condom. Bivariate regression analysis followed by multinomial analysis was conducted to identify the factors that were associated with the likelihood of one-time or continued HIV/AIDS testing. Major study findings indicate that Black males, who reported positive parent support and/or had visited the doctor, were more likely to get tested for HIV/AIDS. Males who had parents or peers that possessed negative attitudes about sex were less likely to get tested for HIV. The findings of this study suggest several implications for prevention and intervention aimed at optimal ways to increase HIV testing among Black males warranting further investigation.