HIV Status and Depressive Symptoms in Same-Sex Couples: The Role of Socioeconomic and Social Support Factors

• In Event: 606 - Section on Social Psychology Roundtable Session (co-sponsored with Section on Sociology of Emotions)
  In Refereed Roundtable: Table 06. Social Support, Social Networks and Social Integration

Abstract

Gay men living with HIV have been shown to experience depressive symptoms as a result of living with a chronic illness and the associated stigmas of the disease. Psychological distress among HIV positive men has been linked to increased sexual risks in sexual and intimate relationships and decreased medication adherence. Utilizing dyadic data from 566 (n=1,132) same-sex male couples in the San Francisco Bay Area, this paper examines the role of partner social support as a mediator of HIV-positive status on depressive symptoms. The results show that HIV-positive men report less social support than those who are HIV negative and this, in turn, accounts for the disparity in depressive symptoms between positive and negative men. Findings suggest that HIV affects how social support functions within gay couples and demonstrates how chronic illness can affect mental health above and beyond physical symptoms.

Author

• Peter Vielehr, Vanderbilt University