Official websites use. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. Most prior research into drivers of HIV transmission has focused on individual characteristics rather than on dyadic-level behaviors such as sex partner selection. Methods: Participants were recruited through a mobile application app for men to meet other men in and completed an online survey on behaviors related to HIV risk. All analyses on the sample of MSM were conducted in In general, mobile app-using MSM reported a general preference for white and Hispanic men and a dispreference for black and Asian men, both for sex and relationship partners.
These partner preferences likely affect the structure of the sexual networks of MSM and may contribute to increased clustering within high HIV incident sexual networks. In , an estimated However, this view of sexual activity and partnership ignores the fact that sex is a dyadic behaviorβcharacteristics of both individuals play a role in determining whether partnering occurs and the behaviors that take place within the partnership.
Therefore, partner selection should be an important consideration in all HIV prevention work, specifically with regard to epidemiological differences in HIV rates by race and ethnicity.
Network literature has shown that romantic and nonromantic social relationships are often homophilous or that there is a tendency for individuals who are similar to each other to form connections. Extending the work of McPherson et al. Research has shown that MSM often hold certain racial and age preferences 3β5 : predominantly, these preferences lead men to select sex partners who share similarities across age, income, and race.
Racial stereotypes and preferences may also affect other racial groups. For example, some work has shown that men find Asian MSM less desirable as sex partners because they are perceived to be less masculine and more submissive.
