Have you recently published US-based HIV research? Click here to share your manuscript

Search...

Publication Profiles

Toward Using Twitter for PrEP-Related Interventions: An Automated Natural Language Processing Pipeline for Identifying Gay or Bisexual Men in the United States

Citation

Klein AZ, Meanley S, O’Connor K, Bauermeister JA, Gonzalez-Hernandez G. Toward Using Twitter for PrEP-Related Interventions: An Automated Natural Language Processing Pipeline for Identifying Gay or Bisexual Men in the United States. JMIR Public Health Surveill. 2022;8(4):e32405. doi:10.2196/32405

Implementation stage:

Pre-Implementation

Implementation outcomes reported:

Not specified

Continuum target addressed:

Linkage to preventative care

Geography:

Philadelphia County-PA

Study Participant Classification:

Community member(s)

Plain Language Objectives

The researchers built an automated method to find US Twitter users who publicly described themselves as gay, bisexual, or men who have sex with men. They wanted to assess whether the identified users’ locations and ages aligned with groups and places most affected by new HIV diagnoses.

Plain Language Abstract

Pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, is underused, and researchers were exploring whether Twitter could eventually support prevention outreach. From September 2020 through January 2021, they collected more than 3 million tweets containing possible self-identification terms. Handwritten search rules and profile information identified 10,043 US users, and another language-processing tool estimated ages. Manual review of 1,000 identified users showed a precision of 0.85, meaning about 85% were true self-reports under the study’s definition. Of 8,756 users assigned to a state, 5,096 (58.2%) were in the 10 states with the most new HIV diagnoses. Of 6,240 assigned to a county, 4,252 (68.1%) were in federal priority jurisdictions. The users’ age distribution also resembled that of US men who have sex with men receiving new diagnoses. The study evaluated identification accuracy and demographic alignment, not intervention effectiveness. It did not establish users’ HIV risk or whether direct outreach through social media would be acceptable, ethical, or effective.

Key Takeaways

Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry’s standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer took a galley of type and scrambled it to make a type specimen book. It has survived not only five centuries, but also the leap into electronic typesetting, remaining essentially unchanged. It was popularised in the 1960s with the release of Letraset sheets containing Lorem Ipsum passages, and more recently with desktop publishing software like Aldus PageMaker including versions of Lorem Ipsum

Publications

Barriers/Facilitators

Science Frameworks

Implementation Science Frameworks

Outcomes

Community Partnerships

Welcome to the Dashboard

This dashboard provides an accessible way to explore national and jurisdictional findings from implementation science research supporting the Ending the HIV Epidemic initiative. The homepage gives you quick access to major sections of the site and highlights key insights drawn from ongoing research and community partnerships.

Navigation Bar

At the top of the page, you’ll find four main sections that guide your experience:

  • About explains the purpose of the dashboard, the research framework guiding this project, and how to interpret the data and publications included here.
  • Results presents visual summaries, charts, and findings from implementation science activities conducted across EHE jurisdictions.
  • Publications provides access to peer-reviewed articles, research outputs, and additional documentation relevant to EHE implementation science.
  • Community highlights survey findings, community partnerships, and engagement activities that support and shape local EHE strategies.

Search Function

Use the search bar at the top of the page to look up specific topics, terms, research areas, or publications. This search function scans the entire dashboard, making it easier to find exactly what you need.

Featured Carousel

At the center of the homepage is a rotating feature carousel that highlights key insights and featured data stories. Each panel includes a brief summary of the topic and an Explore button. Selecting Explore takes you directly into the corresponding area of the site—such as community partnerships, implementation outcomes, or specific research summaries—so you can dive deeper into the data.