ResearchProjects

This study examined how adolescent romantic relationships influence sexual risk and protective behaviors among a nationally representative sample of African Americans aged 13-18. It relied on a more conceptually rich definition of romantic relationships and explored multiple dimensions of both the structure and quality of relationships African American adolescent couples. In particular, it examined the relative strength of associations between multiple indicators of relationship quality and structure and HIV sexual risk and protective behaviors, and examined the possible moderating or interactive effects of relationship structure on the presumed link between relationship quality and engagement in HIV risk behavior.