Mental Health Status And The Factors Influencing Sexual Orientation Among Young Male Students Who Have Sex With Men

Objective In recent years, AIDS has increased rapidly among young students in our country.A total of 2 662 HIV/AIDS cases among students has been reported in January to October, 2015, and there has been an increase of 27.8% comparing to the same period last year. Among these cases, men(especially men who have sex with men(MSM))were the main part. Young students have become the focus of AIDS prevention and control in China. While in the United States, the male-to-male transmission has even become the most important way of HIV transmission. In the group of MSM, young students can not be ignored. This study investigates the mental health status of young male students who have sex with men(YMSSM), compares and analyzes the differences of mental health status between YMSSM living with HIV, YMSSM living without HIV and ordinary heterosexual male college students, and explores impossible factors that may affect same-sex orientation among YMSSM, in order to provide the basis for inducing the prevalence of HIV infection among YMSSM and improving preventive effect of HIV among most-at-risk population. And then it can promote the AIDS prevention and control in this population.Methods Convenient sampling method was used to select study objects. 51YMSSM(including 24 YMSSM living with HIV and 27 living without HIV) were recruited from the District Disease Control Centers and AIDS social organizations and 35 ordinary heterosexual male college students(“ordinary male college students”for short below) were recruited from colleges and universities from May to July, 2015.A one-by-one and face-to-face questionnaire survey was conducted by using the basic information and sexual orientation causes questionnaire and symptom check list-90scale(SCL-90 scale) among all the research objects.Results There were 86 research objects in total. All were male and unmarried. The average age was 21.31 years old. The average ages of 51 YMSSM and 35 ordinary male college students were 21.82 and 20.57 years old. The Han nationality, Tianjin census registered, living in Tianjin for more than two years, majored in engineering,sexual orientated as gay and heterosexuality were 95.3%, 36.0%, 62.8%, 57.0%,52.3% and 7.0%, respectively. The detection rates were 34.0%, 30.0% and 66.0%,respectively, when screening positive according to the total score of more than 160,the positive items of more than 45 and any factor reaching more than 2 scores. The positive rate that may have obvious psychological problems(any≥3 scores) was20.0%. The scores of obsessive-compulsive symptom, depression, anxiety and psychotism, and total score and total average score in YMSM were significantly higher than those in the national norm. There was no significantly difference found in the rest factors. Five top symptoms of psychological problems were obsessivecompulsive symptom, depression, other factor, sensitive of human relationship and anxiety in turn. Comparing YMSSM living with HIV group, YMSSM living without HIV group and ordinary male college students group, there was statistical difference in depression factor only, depression score in YMSSM living with HIV group was the highest, than that in YMSSM living without HIV group, the score that in ordinary male college students group was the lowest, and the median scores were 1.77, 1.54 and 1.23. Comparing to HIV-negative college students, HIV-positive college students had higher scores in depression, anxiety, other factor, total scores and total average scores, and the differences were found significantly. Compared with non-MSM,depression score in MSM was significantly higher. Family environment didn’t affect the positive detection rates of bad mental health status, while the “relationship between my parents and me was harmonious in my childhood” group had significantly lower scores in depression, paranoid, other factor, total score and total average score and less positive items than that not harmonious group. Scores of depression, anxiety, antagonism, terror, psychoticism and total score and positive items were higher in MSM with electra complex than MSM without electra complex,significantly.When analyzed the factors influencing same-sex sexual orientation, men viewing books or movies about gay before 18 years old might to develop same-sex sexual orientation when grown up, the possibility might be five times as much as not viewing(OR=4.945, 95% confidence interval: 1.640-14.909). Disliking doing activities in one’s childhood had five times(OR=4.958, 95% confidence interval:1.553-15.827) to develop homosexual orientation of not disliking doing activities.Among 51 persons having homosexual orientation, 52.9% accounted their orientation as congenital themselves, and 47.1% accounted as posteriority. Among all the posteriority factors, family factor was the most important one, which accounted for41.7%. The infect of internet and films and television programs accounted for 20.8%,which was the second factor. The estimate rate, average rate(median rate) of MSM accounting for among Tianjin male college students was 15.7%(10.0%) and11.7%(2.0%) in MSM group and ordinary male college students, respectively, and14.0%(7.8%) in total.Conclusion(1)YMSSM are bearing with varying degrees of psychological problems generally. HIV positive YMSSM have more serious mental health problems than HIV negative ones.(2)To a certain extent, mental health status is affected by family environment.(3)The experience and personality characteristics of childhood and juvenile have certain indicate function to the homosexual orientation.(4)Schools should increase the education of AIDS knowledge among young students in order to reduce the high risk HIV behavior among YMSSM. At the same time, strengthening the mental health education of YMSSM, especially mental health counseling and intervention for HIV infected persons, so as to reduce the occurrence of sexual risk behavior and reduce the risk of HIV infection.(5)We should pay more attention to the family impact on the status of mental health and sexual orientation among YMSSM.