Violence and vulnerability to HIV/AIDS in young homosexuals and bisexuals

Abstract

Objective: To know the perceptions of young people who identify themselves as homosexuals or bisexuals on experienced violence and identify possible correlations with vulnerability to HIV/AIDS. Methods: Descriptive study with a qualitative approach, using the social representation theory and the concept of vulnerability with thematic content analysis, carried out in the immunodeficiency disorder control center of a public university in the Southeast region of Brazil, which provided multidisciplinary care to HIV/AIDS patients. Thirteen seroconverted young people aged between 13 and 24 years participated in the study. The selection criterion was men who identified themselves as homosexuals or bisexuals, according to terminology used in the Epidemiologic Bulletin on Sexually Transmitted Diseases and AIDS of the Brazilian Ministry of Health. Results: Four thematic categories were found: "homophobia and bullying", "sexual, domestic, and institutional violence", "search for support", and "love and passion". Conclusion: Young homosexuals and bisexuals experienced repeated situations of abuse throughout childhood and adolescence, perceiving sexual, domestic, and institutional violence as the most painful and difficult to confront, and which correlate to vulnerability to HIV/AIDS.