Effectiveness of the SMART Sex Ed program among 13-18 year old English and Spanish speaking adolescent men who have sex with men

Brian Mustanski, Institute for Sexual and Gender Minority Health and Wellbeing, Northwestern University, 625 N. Michigan Avenue, Floor 14, 60611 |, Chicago, IL, USA. brian@northwestern.edu.
Rana Saber, Institute for Sexual and Gender Minority Health and Wellbeing, Northwestern University, 625 N. Michigan Avenue, Floor 14, 60611 |, Chicago, IL, USA.
Kathryn Macapagal, Institute for Sexual and Gender Minority Health and Wellbeing, Northwestern University, 625 N. Michigan Avenue, Floor 14, 60611 |, Chicago, IL, USA.
Maggie Matson, Institute for Sexual and Gender Minority Health and Wellbeing, Northwestern University, 625 N. Michigan Avenue, Floor 14, 60611 |, Chicago, IL, USA.
Eric Laber, Department of Statistics, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA.
Carlos Rodrgiuez-Diaz, Department of Prevention and Community Health, George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health, Washington, DC, USA.
Kevin O. Moran, Institute for Sexual and Gender Minority Health and Wellbeing, Northwestern University, 625 N. Michigan Avenue, Floor 14, 60611 |, Chicago, IL, USA.
Andres Carrion, Institute for Sexual and Gender Minority Health and Wellbeing, Northwestern University, 625 N. Michigan Avenue, Floor 14, 60611 |, Chicago, IL, USA.
David A. Moskowitz, Department of Public Health Sciences, The University of Chicago, Biological Sciences Division , Chicago, USA.
Michael E. Newcomb, Institute for Sexual and Gender Minority Health and Wellbeing, Northwestern University, 625 N. Michigan Avenue, Floor 14, 60611 |, Chicago, IL, USA.

Document Type

Journal Article

Publication Date

8-11-2022

Journal

AIDS and behavior

DOI

10.1007/s10461-022-03806-2

Keywords

Adolescent; HIV prevention; MSM; online; sexual health education

Abstract

Adolescent men who have sex with men (AMSM) have a high HIV incidence and low utilization of testing and prevention services. However, very few HIV prevention programs exist that focus on the unique sexual health needs of AMSM. SMART is a stepped care package of eHealth interventions that comprehensively address the sexual and HIV prevention needs of AMSM. This study examines the impact of the first step of SMART, "SMART Sex Ed," on 13- to 18-year-old AMSM (n = 983) from baseline to three-month follow-up across 18 separate outcomes measuring HIV prevention attitudes, skills, and behaviors. We observed significant change from baseline to three-month post-intervention in nine HIV-related outcomes (e.g., receipt of HIV and STI test, HIV knowledge), as well as largely consistent effects across demographic subgroups (e.g., race, age, rural, low SES). Analyses observed no effects on condom use behaviors. SMART Sex Ed shows promise as an effective sexual health education program for diverse AMSM.

Department

Prevention and Community Health

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