Abstract

FERNANDEZ-DAVILA, Percy  and  MORALES-CARMONA, Adriana. "I don't want to be rejected": experiences of disclosing HIV-status to the sexual partners of HIV-positive men-who-have-sex-with-men in Spain. Escritos de Psicología [online]. 2014, vol.7, n.2, pp.44-55. ISSN 1989-3809.  https://dx.doi.org/10.5231/psy.writ.2014.2306.

This study investigated how a group of HIV-positive men-who-have-sex-with-men manage the disclosure of HIV status to their sexual partners, and also explored the acceptability of serostatus disclosure as a prevention strategy. A qualitative study was conducted in Barcelona, Madrid, and Palma de Mallorca with 78 men (aged 27-65). In total, 35 men were interviewed individually and 43 men took part in five discussion groups. The grounded theory approach was used to analyse the data. Disclosure of HIV-status to sexual partners, regardless of condom use, was uncommon among the participants. The main reasons for not disclosing were: having sex with condom, fear of ruining the sexual encounter, fear of sexual rejection, and fear of being stigmatized. Among those who disclosed their serostatus, certain considerations were taken into account when taking the decision to do so: the age of the sexual partner, the type of sexual partner, and the intensity of the bond. Asking about and/or disclosing HIV status to sexual partners as a prevention strategy was rejected by most participants as stigmatizing. The promotion of disclosing HIV serostatus is not a strategy that can be implemented in Spain while the situation of people living with HIV remains non-normalized throughout Spanish society.

Keywords : HIV Disclosure; HIV-positive; MSM; Sexual Risk Behaviour; Secondary Prevention; Qualitative Research.

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