The study explores the meanings of sex among migrant coal miners in Vietnam and identifies contextual factors influencing engagement in unsafe sexual practices. Findings reveal that sex carries a number of social meanings in the lives of migrant miners: sex is relaxation and reward for their risk and hard work; access to sex is an incentive for miners to continue working in the mine; sex strengthens identity and social networks; sex helps miners to affirm manhood, group membership and masculinity; and sex workers are confidants with whom they can share their problems. Facing accidents at work on a daily basis, miners are less inclined to worry about the long-term risks of HIV infection. In addition, being excluded from access to relevant information, miners feel distant from HIV infection. Findings suggest that interventions on sexual behaviour and practices should be sensitive to the concepts of risk and meanings of sex among migrant groups such as coal miners. © 2010 Taylor & Francis.

HIV/AIDS Vietnam Migrants Miners

Social Values Vietnam social psychology HIV Infections sexual behavior Human immunodeficiency virus infection psychological aspect developing country motivation Social Identification Developing Countries human comparative study ethnology gender identity Unsafe Sex sexually transmitted disease Sexually Transmitted Diseases Coal Mining Humans attitude Cross-Cultural Comparison male Viet Nam cultural factor prostitution Article migration Transients and Migrants sex social behavior