# Exploring Associations of Autonomy Supportive Sexual Health Communication, Needs Satisfaction, and Sexual Health Behaviors for Black MSM in the House Ball Community

> **NIH NIH F31** · UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER · 2022 · $30,752

## Abstract

Abstract
Black and Latinx men who have sex with men (MSM) have the highest risk of HIV of any group in the U.S. with
overall prevalence ranging from 21% to 28%. This ratio could be even higher among Black and Latinx MSM
belonging to the House Ball Community (HBC), an understudied subculture comprised primarily of Black and
Latinx sexual and gender minorities (primarily gay and bisexual men), with documented HIV prevalence
ranging from 4% to 38%, the majority (76%) of which remain undiagnosed. These data mandate urgency to
build upon and expand the repertoire of culturally-congruent interventions that reduce HIV risk for Black and
Latinx MSM, especially among members of the House Ball Community (HBC).
HBC-MSM often seek sexual health advice from trusted and influential members of social and/or sexual
network members and such advice has been linked with less sexual risk behavior, although evidence is mixed.
Basic Psychological Needs Theory, a sub-theory of Self-Determination Theory (SDT), will be utilized as a
framework to further understand how sexual health communication influences sexual health behaviors of HBC-
MSM. The proposed quantitative study will advance this goal by describing characteristics of sexual health
communication embedded within social and sexual networks, and identifying the effects of sexual health
communication on sexual health behaviors among a sample of Black and Latinx HBC-MSM. Such knowledge
is necessary to expand understanding of how sexual health communication impacts sexual health behaviors.
The study provides an unprecedented perspective on sexual health preferences and motivations as
participants socialize and function in HBC. The information generated on the effects of autonomy support on
sexual-risk behaviors will help improve current HIV prevention interventions, as well as inform the development
of future interventions, tailored to HBC-MSM.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10468674
- **Project number:** 5F31MH124585-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER
- **Principal Investigator:** Martez Dexter Ray Smith
- **Activity code:** F31 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $30,752
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2021-08-01 → 2024-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10468674

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10468674, Exploring Associations of Autonomy Supportive Sexual Health Communication, Needs Satisfaction, and Sexual Health Behaviors for Black MSM in the House Ball Community (5F31MH124585-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10468674. Licensed CC0.

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