Interest in anal intercourse has also come from research in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) transmission. Several studies have quantified the increased risk of heterosexual transmission from one act of anal intercourse as compared to one act of vaginal intercourse (Boily et al., ; Leynaert, Downs, & de Vincenzi, ; Powers, Poole, Pettifor, & Cohen, ). The increased risk of HIV transmission through anal intercourse has been well documented in studies of homosexual and bisexual men; however, there has only recently been interest in documenting comparable risks among heterosexual samples. The studies that have used heterosexual samples have generally focused on parts of the world, such as South Africa, that have not only high rates of anal intercourse among heterosexuals, but also high HIV prevalence in the general population and high numbers of concurrent partners among heterosexuals (Kalichman et al., ; Thomas, ). Partner concurrency and the higher transmissibility of HIV through anal intercourse also make studying heterosexual anal intercourse compelling in the United States where the prevalence of HIV is high mainly in ethnic minority samples, such as African American and Latina women who have sex with men (McLellan-Lemal et al., ; Neblett & Davey-Rothwell, ; Reynolds, Fisher, & Napper, ). According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, ), 86 % of HIV cases in women are attributable to heterosexual contact: 65 % of HIV infections in African American women and 17 % of HIV infections in Latina women are attributable to heterosexual contact. Research with women who have male partners recently released from jail or prison has also yielded high rates of anal intercourse (Bland et al., ; Swartzendruber, Brown, Sales, Murray, & DiClemente, ). Harawa and Adimora () linked high incarceration rates among both men and women in the African American community with HIV through a number of mechanisms, including the role incarceration plays in reducing the number of male sexual partners available to African American women., Anal sex is sexual activity involving the anus and can include different forms of stimulation besides penetration. While it can be pleasurable, there are some possible health issues linked to, Anal intercourse in this study refers to the penetration of a woman’s anus by her partner’s penis, and not the more general category of sexual behaviors, anal sex, which can include anal-oral contact and digital penetration..