Dangerous, but pleasurable: social representations of barebacking in Florianopolis

Abstract

This is a quantitative-qualitative and descriptive study with 144 people in locations frequented by the LGBT community, aiming to investigate social representations of barebacking, risk behaviors, attitudes toward condom use and knowledge about HIV/AIDS. Data were analyzed using SPSS and SPAD. The group had a good knowledge about HIV/AIDS, was in favor of condom use and a high percentage of the participants have already done HIV test (65.7%). Consistent condom use was declared by 45.3%, and 27.2% stated that have done barebacking. The main reason for not using condoms was trust in the partner. There were found representations of barebacking linked to repentance and promiscuity, but the pleasure was an important element in this representation.

Keywords

• barebacking
• HIV
• vulnerabilidade
• LGBT