German sociologist
Michael Bochow (born 26 March 1948) is a German sociologist who has authored a number of empirical studies of German gay men with a particular focus on the impact of HIV/AIDS.
After completing his schooling in Lower Saxony, Bochow moved to Berlin, where he studied sociology and political science. After earning his Ph.D., he was employed as a sociologist at the Free University.
Beginning in 1987, Bochow distributed the first of what developed into a series of questionnaires concerning the behavior of homosexual men, surveying sex practices (both safe and risky) as well as the awareness of HIV, AIDS, and prevention among men who have sex with men. These studies, which were supplemented by interviews, were initially commissioned by the Deutsche AIDS-Hilfe, the national umbrella organization of over 100 local agencies offering education and providing services to people with HIV infections, and subsequently by the federal agency for health education.
Bochow has also investigated Germany's Turkish minority, particularly men who have sex with men. He has also authored studies of older gay men, of gay men who live outside of big cities, of lower-class gay men, and of social differences between gay men in western and eastern Germany.