This allows for the generation of numerous ways of experimenting with sexuality among men. While many men who have sex with men (MSM) in lower-income peripheral urban areas of Peru define themselves as homosexuals, many others self-identify as heterosexual ( Cáceres and Rosasco, 1997, 2000 Cáceres et al., 2002). difficulty in negotiating condom use, low self-esteem, low risk perception, alcohol and drug consumption), in the context of compensated sex, play a role in risk-taking for HIV infection. Compensated sex is part of the behaviors of these men, reflecting a complicated construction of sexuality based on traditional conceptions of gender roles, sexual identity and masculinity. The results reveal that cultural, economic and gender factors mold sexual and social relations among a group of men who have sex with men in Peru. Using a Grounded Theory approach, 23 individual interviews and 7 focus groups were analyzed. The study examined sexual risk between these two groups of men, and the significance of the economic exchanges involved in their sexual interactions. This study describes the complex dynamics of the sexual, economic and social interactions between a group of feminized homosexual men and men who have sex with men and self-identify as heterosexual (‘ mostaceros’), in lower-income peripheral urban areas of Lima and Trujillo, Peru.
