Social Networks and HIV Risk Behaviors of Special Populations of Drug Users

描述(由申请人提供)：重新提交的K02申请的主要目标是进一步发展Carrie Oser博士富有成效的独立研究生涯，并通过获得有关社交网络和艾滋病毒干预开发的新培训，加强她对艾滋病毒、药物滥用治疗、犯罪和健康差距的研究重点。K02基于她对特殊人群的关注，包括农村吸毒者和非裔美国人吸毒者。拟议的培训目标将在社会网络、艾滋病毒干预发展和负责任的研究行为方面提供新的指导。具体目标是：(1)确定与男子相比，503名农村未接受治疗的吸毒妇女的艾滋病毒和丙型肝炎病毒风险以及社会网络风险的纵向变化；(2)研究社会网络，包括结构(例如，规模、密度)、功能(例如，情感和工具支持)和内容(例如，对医生的态度)对非裔美国吸毒妇女(与男子相比)艾滋病毒和丙型肝炎危险行为和卫生服务利用的影响，跨越刑事司法地位。这项重大和创新的研究将对公众健康产生重大影响，并将支持NIDA的健康差距倡议，因为它可能有助于我们理解与农村和非裔美国吸毒者健康差距相关的文化和社会网络。此外，本研究通过考察不同的社会网络(例如，自我中心的、二元的和社会中心的)，并使用多水平模型中的纵向数据，改进了先前研究结果的方法局限性。这 拟议的项目将使从K02培训活动中获得的实质性知识和分析技能得以实际应用，并最终形成即将提出的由调查员发起的NIDA赠款申请。具体地说，这些发现将被用作未来基于艾滋病毒社会网络的干预措施的基础，以增加特殊人群对预防性医疗保健的使用，从而减少对昂贵医疗服务的需求，以及减少艾滋病毒危险行为，包括药物使用、无保护措施的性行为和再次犯罪。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The primary goal of this resubmitted K02 application is to further develop Dr. Carrie Oser's productive independent research career and to augment her research focus on HIV, substance abuse treatment, crime, and health disparities by gaining new training on social networks and HIV intervention development. The K02 builds upon her focus on special populations, including both rural drug users and African American drug users. The proposed training goals will provide new instruction in social networks, HIV intervention development, and the responsible conduct of research. The specific aims are: (1) to identify HIV and HCV risk and longitudinal changes in risk in the social networks of 503 rural out-of-treatment drug using women, as compared to men; and (2) to examine the effect of social networks, including structure (e.g., size, density), function (e.g., emotional and instrument support), and content (e.g., attitudes towards physicians), on HIV and HCV risk behaviors and health services utilization among African American drug using women, as compared to men, across criminal justice status. This significant and innovative study will have strong public healt impacts and will support NIDA's Health Disparities Initiative because of its potential to contribut to our understanding of the cultural and social network correlates of health disparities among both rural and African American drug users. In addition, this study improves upon the methodological limitations of previous research findings by examining various social networks (e.g., egocentric, dyadic, and sociocentric) and using longitudinal data in multilevel models. This proposed project will allow for a practical application of the substantive knowledge and analytical skills acquired from the K02 training activities and will ultimately culminate in the development of forthcoming investigator initiated NIDA grant applications. Specifically, these findings will be used as a foundation for future HIV social networks based intervention to increase special populations' use of preventative health care and subsequently reduce the need for expensive medical services, as well as to decrease HIV risk behaviors including drug use, unprotected sex, and recidivism.