Published on Authors of this article:. Background: Despite the prevalent use of geosocial networking dating apps GNDAs , there is limited research on their impact on sexual health outcomes among young music festivals attendees.
Objective: This study aims to explore the use of GNDAs and risky sexual behaviors of young adults attending a music festival. Associations between these variables were estimated using bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses. Results: Of the respondents, Compared with people who had 1 partner, people who had sexual partners in the previous year had almost 7 times the odds of using dating apps odds ratio [OR] 6.
After adjusting for sexual orientation and relationship status, those having casual sex had 3. Similarly, after adjusting for sexual orientation, relationship status, and number of sexual partners, people who had no discussions before having sex about sexually transmitted infections STIs or boundaries were more likely to use dating apps OR 1. Those who perceived the risk of having sex without contraception to be very high had 2.
Compared with those who perceived no risk, people who thought that the risk of having multiple sexual partners was low to high had 1. Conclusions: This study identified that festival goers engaging in certain high-risk sexual behaviors, including casual sex, having multiple sexual partners, and having sex without discussion about STI status and boundaries, are more likely to use dating apps.
Festival goers who perceived sex without any form of contraception, having sex while drunk, and having multiple sexual partners as risky were more likely to be app users. Policy makers and GNDA developers should acknowledge the vulnerability of their users to adverse sexual health outcomes and use GNDAs as a platform to promote risk-reduction practices.
