Sexual health communication among Black father-daughter dyads: A grounded theory study.

Black young adults have disproportionately high rates of HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) when compared with the national average. Although parent-child sexual health communication among Black families has been shown to reduce sexual risk-taking behaviors, far less is known about father-daughter sexual health communication when compared with communication among gender-congruent dyads and mothers. This dearth of knowledge hinders the development of sexual health interventions involving fathers that are sensitive to both the gendered and cultural context. Using constructivist-grounded theory, the present study explores the context surrounding sexual health communication between Black women aged 19-21 ( M = 20.3) years and their biological fathers aged 52-60 ( M = 56.7) years. Seven father-daughter ( N = 7) dyads and an additional five ( N = 5) daughters completed individual in-depth semistructured interviews lasting on average 84 min in length. Analysis revealed several social, cultural, and familial contexts impacting father-daughter communication, in addition to factors that either motivate or hinder communication. Daughters who did not engage in sexual health communication with their fathers expressed an interest in doing so, and participants highlighted varying behavioral, emotional, and relational outcomes resulting from father-daughter sexual health communication or the lack thereof. Study findings can inform future intervention development and strengthen the positive role fathers play in ensuring daughters' healthy sexual development. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).