Substance Use and Risky Sex in Highly Vulnerable Populations

拟议的项目将帮助我发展必要的技能和专业知识，以建立一个独立的 研究生涯集中在物质使用在性冒险行为中的作用以及相关的不良反应。 生殖结果，特别是性传播感染。为了实现这一目标，我将 作为发展心理学家研究生训练和流行病学博士后训练的补充 在弱势群体中进行性风险行为的培训，与种族相关的健康差异， 职业发展纵向研究方法。作为对这些培训活动的补充， 建议：1）使用正在进行的性风险行为和结果的二次数据分析 对未成年母亲子女的纵向研究以及对有和无边界妇女的研究 人格障碍（BPD）; 2）收集16年来青少年母亲后代的新数据 评估和; 3）一个新的试点研究常见的性传播感染在这个样本（后代的少女母亲）。的 建议的研究将构成奖励期第三年ROI申请的基础。我的短 长期目标是（1）增加对性传播感染风险的认识，包括行为失调， 风险性行为和与风险性行为相关的风险因素以及相关结果的基础，（2）学习新的 衡量危险行为和不良生殖结果的方法，包括性传播感染的临床试验， 事件水平评估，（3）了解更多与种族相关的健康差异，（4）制定 研究技能，这将使我成为一个独立的调查员，并获得国家卫生研究院的资金支持， 我的研究，特别是纵向数据分析。我的长期职业目标是了解生态学 在脆弱人群中的毒品使用和性风险行为，以及毒品使用如何可能有助于 非裔美国青年的意外怀孕和性传播感染率明显较高。拟议 职业发展培训将在匹兹堡大学精神病学系进行 医学院。该部门提供了一个优秀的环境，跨学科的培训， 高度合作的教师谁是在他们所选择的领域的领先专家。 相关性（见说明）： 这项拟议中的研究将有助于确定性传播感染的行为风险因素， 与艾滋病毒感染率较高有关，特别是在非洲裔美国人中。研究结果可用于开发 旨在减少弱势群体吸毒和性传播感染的预防方案 青少年和精神病患者。

The proposed project will help me develop the skills and expertise necessary to establish an independent research career focused on the role of substance use in sexual risk-taking behavior and associated adverse reproductive outcomes, especially sexually transmitted infections (STIs). To achieve this goal, I will supplement my graduate training as a developmental psychologist and post-doctoral training in epidemiology with training in sexual risk behavior in vulnerable populations, health disparities associated with race, and career development in longitudinal research methodology. Complementary to these training activities, I propose: 1) secondary data analyses of sexual risk behavior and outcomes using data from an ongoing longitudinal study of the offspring of teenage mothers and a study of women with and without borderline personality disorder (BPD); 2) collection of new data on the offspring of teenage mothers during a 16-year assessment and; 3) a new pilot study of common STIs in this sample (offspring of teenage mothers). The proposed research will form the basis for an ROI application in the third year of the award period. My short term goals are to (1) increase knowledge about risk for STIs, including behavioral dysregulation that may underlie risky sex and risk factors associated with risky sex and associated outcomes, (2) learn new methods of measuring risk behavior and adverse reproductive outcomes, including clinical tests for STIs and event-level assessments, (3) learn more about health disparities associated with race, and (4) develop the research skills that will enable me to become an independent investigator and obtain NIH funding to support my research, specifically longitudinal data analyses. My long-term career goal is to understand the ecological setting for drug use and sexual risk behaviors in vulnerable populations, and how drug use may contribute to significantly higher rates of unintended pregnancies and STIs in African-American youth. The proposed career development training will take place at the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. This department provides an outstanding environment for interdisciplinary training by highly collaborative faculty who are leading experts in their chosen fields. RELEVANCE (See Instructions): The proposed research will help identify behavioral risk factors for sexually transmitted infections that are implicated in higher rates of HIV, especially among African-Americans. The results can be used to develop prevention programs aimed at reducing drug use and sexually transmitted infections among vulnerable adolescents and within psychiatric populations.