Mapping social network disruptions, HIV, and intervention strategies among women with multistate living patterns in the U.S.

Residential relocation is a common and significant determinant of health and well-being, with women being disproportionately vulnerable to higher health risks and poorer access to health services. Data highlighting complex health service linkage issues among populations who move across geographic areas strongly suggest social networks as innovative avenues for interventions. This approach is particularly relevant given the significant influence of social networks on residential relocation, social support, and health behaviors. While network-based health promotion strategies have proven effective in promoting service linkage in international settings, they remain untested, untailored, and unsuitable for high-risk subgroups in the U.S. Within the U.S., African American women have had markedly higher interstate relocation rates over the past two decades, while also having a disproportionate share of high HIV infection and AIDS-related death rates. This Mentored Research Scientist Development Award examines the influence of migration-driven social support network dynamics and characteristics on HIV testing and treatment (Aim 1). It aims to develop (Aim 2), implement, and evaluate (Aim 3) a social network-based intervention for women involved in a major interstate relocation movement to the U.S. South. This K01 will provide necessary training in advanced longitudinal social network data analyses, mixed methods, social network intervention design, and testing and evaluation. These skills are crucial for achieving my long-term goal of becoming an independent interdisciplinary scientist who develops high-impact health interventions that use social networks to promote widespread behavior change. The career development and training essential to launching my independence will be led by a multidisciplinary team of renowned experts in mixed-methods research and interventions with high-risk populations, longitudinal dynamic social network research methods, advanced statistical analyses using multilevel modeling, and HIV intervention design, implementation, and evaluation.