Crack users' intentions to use condoms with different partner types

Purpose. Evidence suggests that farmworkers are practicing high risk behavi or, particularly crack cocaine use and unprotected sex, that consequently p laces them at an increased risk for HIV transmission. This study examined t he intention to use condoms with four different sexual partner types (loved partner, casual partner, paying partner, and new partner) among a sample o f farm workers who were also crack users. Methods. Personal interviews (n = 205) were conducted with male and female farm workers who were crack users (confirmed by urine test). Participants were recruited from a Florida home base community for migrant farmworkers. The questionnaire assessed sexual a ctivity (including number of partners and partner type), drug use and attit udes and beliefs about condoms. Results. Hispanic males reported a signific antly lower likelihood of condom use for all partner types. For commercial partners, intention to use condoms was reduced dramatically for Hispanics b ut was markedly higher among steadily employed subjects. Finally, women wer e half as likely as men to report that they intended to use a condom with a loved partner. Conclusions. This study indicates that ethnicity and the na ture of sexual relationships both play important roles in determining wheth er subjects report that they intend to use condoms, even in a population kn own for the presence of multiple partners and a widely perceived epidemic o f AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases.