  We study the spread of a simulated epidemic in a network of individuals who
may either contract a disease through sexual contact with an infected nearest
neighbor or use safe sex practices under the influence of neighbors who are
already adopting precautions. We show that both interaction between susceptible
and infected individuals and the imitation of opinions concerning safe sex
practices between individuals in favor of using such practices and those
opposed to them leads to a phase transition. If the parameters of the epidemic
are in the supercritical state, corresponding to an unlimited growth of
infection, the interaction parameter of the sociological debate must also be in
the supercritical state to control the spread of infection, and bring the
system to criticality.
  Adopting a theoretical perspective like that of multilayer complex networks,
we study the case where the epidemic network is under the influence of the
above-mentioned sociological debate. We show that at criticality this debate
generates clusters of individuals in favor of safe sex practices and clusters
of individuals opposing their use. We study the influence of a sociological
debate on whether to use safe sex or not, on the spreading of sexually
transmitted infections. We show that due to this debate in the epidemic network
a pattern mirroring the structures of the sociological network appears.
  Finally, we introduce a feedback of the epidemic network on the sociological
network and prove that due to this feedback the sociological system undergoes a
process of self-organization keeping it at criticality. We hope that these
results have the effect of giving interesting suggestions to behavioral
psychologists and information scientists actively involved in the analysis of
the social debate on the moral issues connected to sexual activities.
