Parent-focused Intervention to Reduce HIV Risk in Gay and Bisexual Adolescents

Launched by GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · May 2, 2023

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

This clinical trial is studying a program called PATHS, designed to help parents talk to their gay and bisexual teenage sons about sexual health and reduce the risk of HIV. This is especially important because gay and bisexual youth account for a large percentage of new HIV infections in the U.S. The program is completed online by parents and takes about 45-60 minutes. The trial will involve 350 parent-teen pairs, half of whom will be from racial and ethnic minority backgrounds. Parents will be randomly assigned to either the PATHS program or a different educational film, and both parents and teens will complete surveys every three months for a year to track changes in sexual health knowledge and behaviors.

To participate, both the parent and the adolescent must agree to join the study. Eligible adolescents are cisgender males, aged 14-19, who identify as gay or bisexual and live with their parent at least a couple of days a week. Participants will learn about condom use, HIV prevention methods, and complete a fun demonstration using a shampoo bottle to show how to properly use a condom. The study aims to see if families who use PATHS experience better sexual health outcomes compared to those who watch the film. After the first phase, families who watched the film will also get the chance to participate in PATHS, allowing researchers to see how effective the program is over time.

Gender

ALL

Eligibility criteria

• Inclusion Criteria:
• • We recruit only parent-adolescent dyads for the study. Both parent and adolescent must agree to participate in order to enroll. Only parents receive the intervention. Adolescents are included in the study only for assessment purposes.
• Parent inclusion criteria: Parent or legal guardian of a child with all of the following characteristics:
• • 1. cisgender male
• • 2. age 14-19
• • 3. self-identifies as gay or bisexual
• • 4. lives in the same house with parent at least 2 days per week
• • 5. child is willing to enroll in the study and complete assessments
• Adolescent inclusion criteria:
• • 1. cisgender male
• • 2. age 14-19
• • 3. self-identifies as gay or bisexual
• • 4. lives in the same house with parent at least 2 days per week
• • 5. parent is willing to enroll in the study and be randomized to one of two intervention conditions.
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • -- Adolescent with known HIV infection