Illness-related support and negative network interactions: effects on HIV-infected men's depressive symptomatology.

Data collected as part of a psychosocial study of gay and bisexual men's experiences of living with HIV infection as a chronic illness were examined to investigate the psychological impact of the perceived availability of illness-related support and negative illness-related network interactions in a sample of men from this population. The sample was comprised of 144 HIV-infected non-Hispanic white, African American, and Puerto Rican Men living in the New York City metropolitan area. Analyses found evidence of a conjoint (interactive) effect between perceived support and negative network interactions. There was no evidence of either perceived availability of illness-related network support buffering or negative illness-related network interactions amplifying the effect of HIV/AIDS-related physical symptomatology on depressive symptomatology.