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1. Introduction
In May 2004, ten more nations, including Poland, became members of the European Union (EU). This gradually gave citizens of these countries the opportunity to seek work in other EU member states, particularly those countries granting full work rights. Of note, central and east European nationals were allowed to work in the UK, Sweden, and Ireland immediately after accession. If the average length of stay abroad is considered, the UK became the most important destination country for Polish migrants, post EU enlargement [1]. Poland remains a top source of migrants in the UK, accounting for 14.9% of all foreign-born residents [2]. The migration of Poles to the UK seems significant in terms of the numbers of people involved [1]. These Polish post-accession migrants living in the UK are young, with a median age of 28 years; 81%-83% are aged from 20-34 years old [1,3].
The relocation to a new country initiates various cultural and psychological changes that involve a number of forms of mutual accommodation, leading to longer-term psychological and socio-cultural adaptations [4]. Such a process, in which heritage culture retention and English-culture acquisition represent separate dimensions, is defined within cultural studies as acculturation [5]. The adaptation to a new social environment might be particularly challenging when the migrants are settled in their new home, which contrasts culturally and socially to their homeland. The changes that occur can create cultural conflict and acculturative stress during intercultural interactions. They can also influence various aspects of the migrant’s health, including their sexual health. Although both are largely defined by social and economic factors [6], affecting many migrants at a higher rate, scant research has been carried out to identify the specific determinants of sexual health and the differences in vulnerability in different sub-populations of migrants. This gap in knowledge can be partly explained by the lack of consistent and comprehensive data [6].
While some recent research conducted in Europe [7,8,9], as well as in some other continents [10,11], has pointed to international migration as being one of the factors influencing risky sexual behaviors, the change in these behaviors at an individual level after migration has not been thoroughly quantified to a satisfactory level [12,13]. Gaining insight into the differences in sexually transmitted infections (STIs) risk...