Needle‐Sharing: A Longitudinal Study of Psychosocial Risk and Protective Factors

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Abstract
The authors examined the psychosocial correlates of needle‐sharing behavior at two points in time (T1 and T2) by use of a prospective longitudinal design. Subjects were 278 male intravenous drug users, 111 of whom were HIV‐positive. All subjects were given structured questionnaires by trained, ethnically matched interviewers. Pearson correlation coefficients (rs) and hierarchical regression analyses were done to examine interrelationships among T1 psychosocial domains, T1 needle‐sharing, and T2 needle‐sharing. T1 psychosocial/personality factors predicting T2 needle‐sharing included unconventionality, poor emotional control, and poor intrapsychic functioning. The relationship of T1 needle‐sharing to T2 needle‐sharing was buffered by the T1 psychosocial protective factors. The findings supported a mediational model, in which personality and peer factors predicted T1 needle‐sharing, which served as the mediator for T2 needle‐sharing. (American Journal on Addictions 1996; 5:209–219)