Strong Father–Child Relationships and Other Positive Childhood Experiences, Adverse Childhood Experiences, and Sexual Risk Factors for HIV among Young Adults Aged 19–24 Years, Namibia, 2019: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Using cross-sectional data from the 2019 Namibia Violence Against Children and Youth Survey and sex-stratified multivariable models, we assessed the associations between four different positive childhood experiences (PCEs) and having ≥3 adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), including ≥3 ACE–PCE interaction terms, and seven sexual risk factors for HIV acquisition among young adults aged 19–24 years. One PCE, having a strong father–child relationship, was inversely associated with two risk factors among women (lifetime transactional sex (OR, 0.4; 95% CI, 0.2–0.7) and recent age-disparate sexual relationships (OR, 0.3; 95% CI, 0.2–0.5)), and significantly interacted with having ≥3 ACEs for three risk factors among women (not knowing a partner’s HIV status, infrequently using condoms, and ever having an STI) and one among men (having multiple sexual partners in the past year). The other PCEs were significantly associated with ≤1 HIV risk factor and had no significant interaction terms. Strong father–child relationships may reduce HIV acquisition risk and mitigate the effect of childhood adversity on HIV risk among young adults in Namibia.