When Craigslist introduced its personal section into respective areas around the country, the arrival was linked to a 15.9 percent risk in HIV incidence. Publishing their findings in MIS Quarterly, researchers analyzed HIV surveillance data from 33 U.S. states between 1999 and 2008 and referenced these with Craigslist’s appearance in various markets.

Instead of entering the U.S. market all at once, Craigslist entered individual geographic markets one by one. This allowed the researchers to better study how the arrival of the website’s services affected an area.

After factoring out other potential drivers of HIV trends in the various states, including higher testing rates leading to increased diagnosis, the investigators concluded that Craigslist was likely influencing a rise in HIV. They concluded that it was the personals section and not the escort ads that was likely causing the rise. Previous research has suggested that sex workers who find their clients online are less inclined to have risky sex with their patrons.

“Health care practitioners and policymakers have to look more closely at online platforms to assess how its usage may facilitate the spread of HIV and STDs across the country,” Jason Chan, assistant professor of information and decision sciences at the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minneapolis and the study’s lead author, said in a press release.

The judgmental tone of the study’s title, “Internet’s Dirty Secret: Assessing the Impact of Online Intermediaries on HIV Transmission,” is highly unusual for a paper of its kind.

To read the press release, click here.

To read the study abstract, click here.

    Read More About:

  • #HIV