TY - JOUR
T1 - HIV sexual risk behavior and family dynamics in a Dominican tourism town
AU - Guilamo-Ramos, Vincent
AU - Padilla, Mark
AU - Cedar, Anna Lindberg
AU - Lee, Jane
AU - Robles, Gabriel
N1 - Funding Information:
Acknowledgments Funding for this study was provided by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (R21AA018078). We would like to express special thanks to Sarah Leavitt for her comments and feedback on the article.
PY - 2013/10
Y1 - 2013/10
N2 - Expansion of the tourism industry in the Dominican Republic has had far-reaching health consequences for the local population. Research suggests families with one or more members living in tourism areas experience heightened vulnerability to HIV/STIs due to exposure to tourism environments, which can promote behaviors such as commercial and transactional sex and elevated alcohol use. Nevertheless, little is known about how tourism contexts influence family dynamics, which, in turn, shape HIV risk. This qualitative study examined family relationships through in-depth interviews with 32 adults residing in Sosúa, an internationally known destination for sex tourism. Interviewees situated HIV risk within a context of limited employment opportunities, high rates of migration, heavy alcohol use, and separation from family. This study has implications for effective design of health interventions that make use of the role of the family to prevent HIV transmission in tourism environments.
AB - Expansion of the tourism industry in the Dominican Republic has had far-reaching health consequences for the local population. Research suggests families with one or more members living in tourism areas experience heightened vulnerability to HIV/STIs due to exposure to tourism environments, which can promote behaviors such as commercial and transactional sex and elevated alcohol use. Nevertheless, little is known about how tourism contexts influence family dynamics, which, in turn, shape HIV risk. This qualitative study examined family relationships through in-depth interviews with 32 adults residing in Sosúa, an internationally known destination for sex tourism. Interviewees situated HIV risk within a context of limited employment opportunities, high rates of migration, heavy alcohol use, and separation from family. This study has implications for effective design of health interventions that make use of the role of the family to prevent HIV transmission in tourism environments.
KW - Dominican Republic
KW - Family
KW - HIV/AIDS
KW - Sexual risk behavior
KW - Tourism
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U2 - 10.1007/s10508-012-0064-y
DO - 10.1007/s10508-012-0064-y
M3 - Article
C2 - 23436038
AN - SCOPUS:84885961051
SN - 0004-0002
VL - 42
SP - 1255
EP - 1265
JO - Archives of Sexual Behavior
JF - Archives of Sexual Behavior
IS - 7
ER -