Citation

Stults CB, Javdani S, Greenbaum CA, Kapadia F, Halkitis PN. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2015; 154: 54-62.

Affiliation

Center for Health, Identity, Behavior & Prevention Studies, The Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, New York University, 726 Broadway, Suite 525, New York, NY 10003, USA; Department of Applied Psychology, The Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, New York University, 246 Greene Street, New York, NY 10003, USA; Global Institute of Public Health, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA; Department of Population Health, Langone School of Medicine, New York University, New York, NY 10016, USA. Electronic address: perry.halkitis@nyu.edu.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2015, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2015.06.008

PMID

26130334

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: Substance use is prevalent among young men who have sex with men (YMSM) and may be associated with intimate partner violence (IPV). Experiences of IPV are associated with several adverse health conditions among adult MSM, but there is a gap in knowledge about this relationship among YMSM, which warrants further investigation.

METHODS: This study employs baseline data from a prospective cohort study to examine lifetime experiences of IPV in relation to substance use in the previous 30 days among n=528 YMSM in New York City from 2009 to 2011. To examine the extent to which IPV (any experiences, victimization, and perpetration) are related to substance use (alcohol, marijuana, stimulant, and other drugs) in the last 30 days, distinct 2-step multinomial logistic regression models, controlling for sociodemographic differences, were constructed.

RESULTS: 44.3% reported lifetime IPV experience, with 39.2% of reporting victimization and 30.5% reporting perpetration. IPV is associated with a 1.6 increased odds of 2 or more instances of alcohol use, a 1.6-1.8 increased odds of 2 or more instances of marijuana use, a 1.8-2.5 increased odds of 2 or more instances of stimulant use, and a 4.1-6.1 increased odds of 2 or more instances of other substance use.

CONCLUSION: Findings highlight the strong association between IPV and increased frequency of substance use among YMSM and provide support that violence may exist as part of a syndemic facing YMSM. Prevention and intervention strategies may be improved by addressing substance use in the context of IPV and other related health challenges.

Language: en