News Finding: While these are wildly important, more programming is needed to help sustain, support, and supplement the individual efforts of HIV-negative black gay and bisexual men.
Paper Finding: In combination, some of these decisions can be viewed adaptive risk reduction behaviors that facilitate avoidance of HIV, and some may have applicability to risk reduction interventions.
News Context: These suggestions signify a major departure from the strategies HIV service organizations currently employ, the bulk of which include provision of condoms and PrEP, HIV testing and counseling, and engagement and retention in care for individuals living with HIV. While these are wildly important, more programming is needed to help sustain, support, and supplement the individual efforts of HIV-negative black gay and bisexual men. The four critical timepoints participants identified were (1) looking for sex partners, (2) choosing sex partners, (3) lead up to hookup, and (4) immediately before or during hookup.
Paper Context: One of the key messages from this study is that among men at high-risk for HIV who remain HIV negative (i.e., ''positive deviants''), there may be successive decisionmaking across a timeline to a sexual event that reduces risk, even if a condom is not used. In combination, some of these decisions can be viewed adaptive risk reduction behaviors that facilitate avoidance of HIV, and some may have applicability to risk reduction interventions. Findings suggest that men who do not contract HIV may be engaging in risk reduction strategies before and during sexual events that could lead to increased condom use, avoidance or delay of a risky sexual event (such as when the men discussed not getting so high or drunk they might end up in a situation in which they do not use a condom), or reduction of their risk pool (i.e., reducing the number or type of partners likely to have HIV through screening and pre-selection).