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Recruiting Drug Using Men Who Have Sex with Men in Behavioral Intervention Trials: A Comparison of Internet and Field-Based Strategies

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Abstract

Although online and field-based samples of men who have sex with men (MSM) have been compared on a variety of markers, differences in drug use have not been well examined. In addition, generalization from studies comparing recruitment methods is often limited by a focus on either HIV seropositive or seronegative MSM. We compared two New York City-based samples of MSM recruited simultaneously between July 2009 and January 2010—one sample recruited in the field (n = 2,402) and one sample recruited via the Internet (n = 694). All recruitment efforts targeted men without restriction on age or self-reported HIV status. Our results show marked differences in drug and alcohol use between online and field-based samples of MSM. Specifically, men surveyed online were significantly more likely to have tried a variety of drugs, including methamphetamine, cocaine, and ecstasy. Men recruited online were also more likely to report older age, HIV positive serostatus, and “never” using condoms. Internet-based recruitment was found to be more cost-effective in terms of recruitment yield than was field-based recruitment.

Resumen

Aunque muestras de hombres que tienen sexo con hombres (HSH) reclutados online y en la comunidad han sido comparadas en muchos aspectos, las diferencias en el uso de drogas no han sido bien examinadas. Además, la generalización de estudios que comparan distintos métodos de reclutamiento es limitada por enfocarse exclusivamente en HSH de estatus VIH-positivo o negativo. Nosotros hemos comparado dos muestras de HSH reclutados simultáneamente en la Ciudad de New York entre Julio de 2009 y Enero de 2010—una muestra reclutada en la comunidad (n = 2,402) y la otra reclutada en Internet (n = 694). Todos los esfuerzos de reclutamiento se enfocaron en hombres sin restricción de edad o estatus VIH. Nuestros resultados muestran grandes diferencias en el uso de drogas y alcohol entre muestras de HSH de la comunidad y muestras de Internet. Específicamente, los hombres encuestados online reportaron mayor uso de drogas que los hombres encuestados en la comunidad, incluyendo metamphetamina, cocaína y éxtasis. También mostraron mayor tendencia a ser mayores, a reportar estatus seropositivo, y a reportar nunca usar condones en comparación a los hombres encuestados en la comunidad. El reclutamiento online resultó más efectivo en términos de costo que el reclutamiento en la comunidad.

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Acknowledgments

The Young Men’s Health Project was supported by a grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) (R01 DA020366, Jeffrey T. Parsons, Principal Investigator) and the authors gratefully acknowledge Dr. Corina L. Weinberger, the Project Director, and the contributions of the Young Men’s Health Project team—Michael Adams, Anthony Bamonte, Kristi Gamarel, Chris Hietikko, Catherine Holder, John Pachankis, Anthony Surace, and Brooke Wells. The ACE Project was supported by a grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) (R01 DA023395, Jeffrey T. Parsons, Principal Investigator) and the authors gratefully acknowledge Dr. Julia Tomassilli, the Project Director, and the contributions of the ACE Project Team—Michael Adams, Kristi Gamarel, Chris Hietikko, Catherine Holder, John Pachankis, Ja’Nina Walker, and Margaret Wolff. The authors would like to thank Kevin Robin, the Director of Recruitment at the time these data were collected, and all of the members of the CHEST Recruitment Team. The authors would also like to thank Dr. Richard Jenkins for his support of the Young Men’s Health Project and Dr. Shoshana Kahana for her support of the ACE Project.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Hunter College, Graduate Center of the City University of New York (CUNY), New York, NY, USA

    Jeffrey T. Parsons & Sarit A. Golub

  2. Center for HIV/AIDS Educational Studies and Training (CHEST), Hunter College, City University of New York, 695 Park Avenue, New York, NY, 10065, USA

    Jeffrey T. Parsons, Andrea C. Vial, Tyrel J. Starks & Sarit A. Golub

  3. CUNY School of Public Health, Hunter College, New York, NY, USA

    Jeffrey T. Parsons

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  1. Jeffrey T. Parsons
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Correspondence to Jeffrey T. Parsons.

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Parsons, J.T., Vial, A.C., Starks, T.J. et al. Recruiting Drug Using Men Who Have Sex with Men in Behavioral Intervention Trials: A Comparison of Internet and Field-Based Strategies. AIDS Behav 17, 688–699 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-012-0231-0

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