The impact of childhood bullying among HIV-positive men: Psychosocial correlates and risk factors

Abstract

Objectives While some studies have examined the deleterious effects of childhood bullying on adults, no studies to date have focused on the effects of bullying on Persons Living with HIV (PLH), a particularly at-risk population. PLH experience higher rates of childhood and adulthood physical and sexual abuse than the population at large, and experience of childhood abuse appears to be predictive of sexual and other risk behaviors in this population. Thus it remains critical to examine rates of childhood bullying and correlates of bullying in adult PLH. Methods A sample of 171 HIV-positive men over 18 years of age were recruited from the San Francisco Bay Area. All participants reported experiencing symptoms of traumatic stress. The participants were recruited as part of a larger study assessing a group intervention for individuals with HIV and symptoms of trauma. Self-report questionnaires were administered to assess participants’ exposure to bullying in childhood and trauma symptoms in adulthood. Results Bullying was commonly reported by men in the current sample, with 91% of the sample endorsing having experienced some level of bullying before age 18. Having been bullied in childhood was significantly (p < .05) associated with methamphetamine use in adulthood, difficulties with mood, and with symptoms of trauma. Results of a hierarchical regression equation found that report of bullying in childhood predicted additional, unique variance in trauma symptoms in adulthood above and beyond the effect of exposure to other forms of trauma, resulting in a better-fitting model. Conclusions The current study highlights the association between rate of childhood bullying and symptoms of trauma in adulthood, accounting for the effect of exposure to other forms of trauma. Given the impact of trauma symptoms on disease progression in PLH, exposure to bullying must be considered in any intervention aiming to reduce trauma symptoms or improve mental or physical health among HIV-positive populations.

Pathways From Peer Victimization to Sexually Transmitted Infections Among African American Adolescents

“…was not directly associated with STIs, which was incongruent with the past research findings (Kamen et al, 2013;Okumu et al, 2017;Russell et al, 2011). It is unlikely that bullied youths immediately acquire STIs; rather, there are several mechanisms linking peer victimization and STIs, which require further exploration.…”

“…Numerous studies have documented that peer victimization during childhood is a precursor to risk behaviors, such as substance use. Despite extant cross-sectional and longitudinal studies that have revealed that bullied youth have an elevated risk of acquiring STIs and HIV during adolescence (Okumu, Mengo, Ombayo, & Small, 2017) and adulthood (Friedman, Marshall, Stall, Cheong, & Wright, 2008; Kamen et al, 2013; Russell, Ryan, Toomey, Diaz, & Sanchez, 2011), research examining the link between peer victimization and STIs is limited. Okumu et al’s (2017) findings from a nationally representative sample of 13,571 youths in Grades 9 to 12 suggest a significant positive association between bullying experiences and HIV risks.…”

Bullying and HIV Risk Among High School Teenagers: The Mediating Role of Teen Dating Violence

“…Previous studies on bullying have established that students who experience bullying are faced with trauma and use sex to cope with the victimization . As students engage with multiple sexual partners, they are bound to be exposed to HIV . Additionally, interdependency theorists acknowledge that when individuals encounter bullying, those interactions inform their behavior .…”

“…School contexts provide adolescents with space to develop their sexuality, autonomy, and a sense of self . Childhood peer victimization, for example, can be pervasive especially for the youth, with 91% of HIV‐positive adults reporting bullying during their childhood . Bullying is defined as peer victimization that may involve physical, verbal, or indirect aggression .…”

On the Molecular Modeling Analyses of Novel HIV-1 Protease Inhibitors Based on Modified Chitosan Dimer

“…The risk of spousal violence in Sub-Sahara is studied [11]. A study is conducted to focus on the effects of bullying on people living with HIV (PLH), a particularly at-risk population [12]. A review is carried out to focus on HIV issues and people with disabilities in more than a decade [13].…”