Abstract
In 2009, it was estimated that there were 1,148,200 people in the United States living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The Center for Disease Control (2013) reported that Latinos accounted for 22% of all new HIV cases among men who have sex with men (MSM) in 2010, a 2% increase since 2009. Recent research has put more emphasis on explaining the increase in HIV rates and risky sexual behavior for Latino gay men by mapping specific cultural constructs onto behaviors. A total of 107 self-identified gay Latino men were surveyed to assess the direct effects of machismo, familismo, internalized racism, internalized heterosexism, gay community involvement and Latino community involvement on unprotected anal intercourse in the past three months. Close to half (47.7%) had a college education and almost half (48.6%) of the participants reported an income falling between $10,001 and $40,000. Seventy-one percent of participants came from California. In the current study, 63.5% of the participants reported having unprotected anal intercourse in the past three months. However, the current study found no relationship between machismo, familismo, internalized racism, internalized heterosexism, gay community involvement and Latino community involvement with unprotected anal intercourse. In addition, the independent variables did not predict unprotected anal intercourse in the past three months. Regardless, it appears that unprotected anal intercourse is still an issue among the gay Latino male population. Therefore, major efforts are still needed to address prevention needs for gay Latino men.