Use of gay Internet sites and views about online health promotion among men who have sex with men

Abstract

In May-June 2002, 4,974 men who have sex with men (MSM), average age 31 years, completed a self-administered questionnaire online accessed through two popular gay Internet sites in the UK (gaydar and gay.com UK). Most men were white (95%), employed (83%), lived in the UK (91%) and self-identified as gay (85%). Nearly half (46%) had not been tested for HIV, while 6% said they were HIV-positive. One-third (31%) reported high-risk sexual behaviour in the previous three months, i.e. unprotected anal intercourse with a partner of unknown or discordant HIV status. Nearly all the men (82%) had looked for a sexual partner on the Internet and three-quarters had been doing so for more than a year. Almost half the men (47%) said they preferred to meet men through the Internet rather than in bars or other 'offline' venues. Although nearly 40% of men said the most important reason for using these Internet sites was to find sexual partners, a further 17% said they primarily used them to have contact with other men, 16% because they were bored, 12% for entertainment, 4% because they were lonely and 3% because they were addicted to it. The majority of men in this survey had favourable attitudes towards online health promotion. Most men thought that Internet sites should allow health workers into chat-rooms (75%); would click on a banner to find out about sexual health (78%); and said if they met a health worker in a chat-room they would find out what they had to say (84%). In multivariate analysis, being HIV-positive, older age and high-risk sexual behaviour were all independently associated with an increased frequency of using the Internet to look for sex (p<0.05). The Internet has emerged as an important meeting place for men who have sex with men. As online HIV prevention initiatives are developed it will be important to monitor the extent to which the favourable attitudes seen here are reflected in preventive behaviours.

Gay men, Gaydar and the commodification of difference

“…Indeed, the presence of health promotion workers, sits alongside these other opportunities offering a common interpretation of gay male sexuality -that gay men are promiscuous and that the incidence of the HIV virus, in the UK at least, is higher than in the heterosexual population. In the face of this there are tensions in regard to how safe a web-based environment may be viewed given that other studies have indicated such groups favour social networking sites over traditional meeting places such as bars (Bolding et al, 2004). In many respects Bolding et al's conclusion is founded upon assumptions regarding the anonymity of web site interactions -or at least the ability to remain anonymouswhereas we argue that Gaydar demands specific types of interaction and engagement that conforms to the series of sexualised meanings that have developed around its creation and development.…”

2016 United Kingdom national guideline on the sexual health care of men who have sex with men

“…However as an adjunct to conventional methods it increased the number of syphilis contacts tested and treated by 26% (349). Several studies show it to be more acceptable to MSM than to the general population (350) and a high proportion of English MSM reported that they would engage with a health care worker in an on-line chat room (351). Patient initiated PN is supported by the LetThemKnow tool first used in Melbourne (352) and provided in the UK by GMFA (353,354), allowing patients to send a code to contacts via text, website or app.…”

HIV Behavioral Research Online

“…9 Men online in the UK also had favorable attitudes towards online health promotion. 33 In fact, most men (75%) thought that Internet sites should allow health workers into chat rooms, would click on a banner to find out about sexual health (78%), and were agreeable to engaging health workers online (84%).…”