TY - JOUR
T1 - A syndemic analysis of alcohol use and sexual risk behavior among tourism employees in Sosúa, Dominican Republic
AU - Padilla, Mark B.
AU - Guilamo-Ramos, Vincent
AU - Godbole, Ramona
N1 - Funding Information:
The authors disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research and/or authorship of this article: Funding was provided by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA; R21AA018078). The contents of this article are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the NIAAA or the National Institutes of Health.
PY - 2012/1
Y1 - 2012/1
N2 - The Dominican Republic has high rates of HIV infection and alcohol consumption. Unfortunately, little research has been focused on the broader sources of the synergy between these two health outcomes. We draw on syndemic theory to argue that alcohol consumption and sexual risk behavior are best analyzed within the context of culture and economy in Caribbean tourism spaces, which produce a synergy between apparently independent outcomes. We sampled 32 men and women working in the tourism industry at alcohol-serving establishments in Sosúa, Dominican Republic. Interviewees described alcohol consumption as an implicit requirement of tourism work, tourism industry business practices that foster alcohol consumption, and an intertwining relationship between alcohol and sexual commerce. The need to establish relationships with tourists, combined with the overconsumption of alcohol, contributed to a perceived loss of sexual control, which participants felt could impede condom use. Interventions should incorporate knowledge of the social context of tourism areas to mitigate the contextual factors that contribute to HIV infection and alcohol consumption among locals.
AB - The Dominican Republic has high rates of HIV infection and alcohol consumption. Unfortunately, little research has been focused on the broader sources of the synergy between these two health outcomes. We draw on syndemic theory to argue that alcohol consumption and sexual risk behavior are best analyzed within the context of culture and economy in Caribbean tourism spaces, which produce a synergy between apparently independent outcomes. We sampled 32 men and women working in the tourism industry at alcohol-serving establishments in Sosúa, Dominican Republic. Interviewees described alcohol consumption as an implicit requirement of tourism work, tourism industry business practices that foster alcohol consumption, and an intertwining relationship between alcohol and sexual commerce. The need to establish relationships with tourists, combined with the overconsumption of alcohol, contributed to a perceived loss of sexual control, which participants felt could impede condom use. Interventions should incorporate knowledge of the social context of tourism areas to mitigate the contextual factors that contribute to HIV infection and alcohol consumption among locals.
KW - Caribbean people / cultures
KW - HIV/AIDS
KW - alcohol / alcoholism
KW - ethnography
KW - sex workers
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U2 - 10.1177/1049732311419865
DO - 10.1177/1049732311419865
M3 - Article
C2 - 21859907
AN - SCOPUS:83455231274
SN - 1049-7323
VL - 22
SP - 89
EP - 102
JO - Qualitative Health Research
JF - Qualitative Health Research
IS - 1
ER -