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Associations Between Fathers' and Sons' Sexual Risk in Rural Kenya: The Potential for Intergenerational Transmission.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Giusto, AM; Green, EP; Puffer, ES
Published in: The Journal of adolescent health : official publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine
August 2017

Despite high rates of HIV in areas of Sub-Saharan Africa and men's role in driving the epidemic, little is known about whether or how sexual risk-both behaviors and beliefs-may be passed down through generations of males. This study examined associations between sexual risk behaviors and sex-related beliefs of adolescent males and those of their male caregivers in Kenya, as well as the potential moderating effects of parenting characteristics and father-son relationship quality.Cross-sectional linear regression analysis was applied to baseline data from a trial of a family- and church-based intervention for families in rural Kenya that followed a stepped-wedge cluster randomized design. Our subsample consisted of 79 male caregiver and son (aged 10-16 years) dyads.Results demonstrated a direct relationship between fathers' and sons' sex-related beliefs that was not moderated by parenting or quality of father-son relationship. Parenting/relationship characteristics did moderate the relationship between fathers' and sons' sexual behavior; if fathers did not engage in high-risk sex and exhibited more positive parenting/higher relationship quality, their sons were less likely to be sexually active. Among fathers having high-risk sex, parenting was unrelated to sons' behavior except at very high levels of positive parenting/relationship quality; at these levels, sons were actually more likely to have had sex.Findings support recommendations to include male caregivers in youth HIV prevention efforts, potentially by targeting fathers' parenting strategies and their individual risk.

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Published In

The Journal of adolescent health : official publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine

DOI

EISSN

1879-1972

ISSN

1054-139X

Publication Date

August 2017

Volume

61

Issue

2

Start / End Page

219 / 225

Related Subject Headings

  • Unsafe Sex
  • Sexual Behavior
  • Rural Population
  • Risk-Taking
  • Public Health
  • Parenting
  • Nuclear Family
  • Middle Aged
  • Male
  • Kenya
 

Citation

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Giusto, A. M., Green, E. P., & Puffer, E. S. (2017). Associations Between Fathers' and Sons' Sexual Risk in Rural Kenya: The Potential for Intergenerational Transmission. The Journal of Adolescent Health : Official Publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine, 61(2), 219–225. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2017.02.007
Giusto, Ali M., Eric P. Green, and Eve S. Puffer. “Associations Between Fathers' and Sons' Sexual Risk in Rural Kenya: The Potential for Intergenerational Transmission.The Journal of Adolescent Health : Official Publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine 61, no. 2 (August 2017): 219–25. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2017.02.007.
Giusto AM, Green EP, Puffer ES. Associations Between Fathers' and Sons' Sexual Risk in Rural Kenya: The Potential for Intergenerational Transmission. The Journal of adolescent health : official publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine. 2017 Aug;61(2):219–25.
Giusto, Ali M., et al. “Associations Between Fathers' and Sons' Sexual Risk in Rural Kenya: The Potential for Intergenerational Transmission.The Journal of Adolescent Health : Official Publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine, vol. 61, no. 2, Aug. 2017, pp. 219–25. Epmc, doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2017.02.007.
Giusto AM, Green EP, Puffer ES. Associations Between Fathers' and Sons' Sexual Risk in Rural Kenya: The Potential for Intergenerational Transmission. The Journal of adolescent health : official publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine. 2017 Aug;61(2):219–225.
Journal cover image

Published In

The Journal of adolescent health : official publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine

DOI

EISSN

1879-1972

ISSN

1054-139X

Publication Date

August 2017

Volume

61

Issue

2

Start / End Page

219 / 225

Related Subject Headings

  • Unsafe Sex
  • Sexual Behavior
  • Rural Population
  • Risk-Taking
  • Public Health
  • Parenting
  • Nuclear Family
  • Middle Aged
  • Male
  • Kenya