Activity Spaces and Spatial Mobility

The focus of this work is to assess the role of activity spaces (i.e. locations of social and sexual interaction) and spatial mobility (i.e. movement across geographic locations) on risk for sexually transmitted infections (STI) as well as partner and sexual violence among adolescent girls. The intersection of STI risk and violence will also be a priority, given the well-documented impact of partner and sexual violence on increasing risk for STI among girls. This project involves a population of adolescents residing in San Diego, CA, in neighborhoods near the U.S.-Mexico border where STI as well as dating and sexual violence, and violence-related risk factors (e.g. family violence, substance use) are prevalent. In the past decade, there has been increasing interest in the role of geography and how neighborhood-level factors may impact risk for violence and STI. This project aims to expand upon this previous work by examining the dynamic movement of individuals across politically-defined geographic units and the activity spaces outside of the home in which risky sexual behaviors as well as dating and sexual violence are occurring.

*Funded by the National Institutes of Health