Le processus d'interprétation des risques sexuels chez les jeunes en situation de rue à Montréal

Several studies identify factors associated with sexual risk-taking among street-involved youths. However, few studies have documented, from their perspective, the meanings that youths give to sexual risks in the street context. This study aims to: 1) describe the interpretative process of sexual risk among street-involved youths; 2) document the role of street context in the interpretative process of sexual risk among these youths. Forty-two street-involved youths in Montreal (24 men, 18 women) aged 18 to 32 were encountered in individual interview. Qualitative analysis identified five conceptual categories to the interpretative process of sexual risk: 1) the survival urgency at the expense of sexual health; 2) risk taking as an expression of the desire to end his days; 3) sexual partners selected on the basis of trust and personal hygiene; 4) sexual practices to maximize the potential gains; 5) previous experiences that contradict the discourse about the risk of STIs. This study shows that the interpretative processes of sexual risk among these youths is constructed in an interaction between the meaning to Self, others and sexual behaviors, in the light of the precarious living conditions of the street context. This suggests the necessity to modify the interpretative processes of sexual risks and the precarious living conditions of the street context so that youths give more importance to their sexual health.