Although HIV rates among women continue to increase, HIV interventions addressing the unique circumstances of women (e.g., gender role expectations and gender power differences) are limited. Many women are at risk for HIV infection through their own or their sex partner's injection drug use and through involvement in high-risk sexual activities. The proposed study will be conducted in two phases. During Phase 1 (12 months) qualitative/elicitation research will be conducted and gender-specific interventions will be developed for three comparison groups of women: (1) injection drug users, (2) crack cocaine users, and (3) non-using sex partners of male injection users. All women will reside in one of two Atlanta communities, be 18 years or older, be African American, and fit the eligibility criteria for one of the three comparison groups. Women will be recruited through targeted sampling and grounded theory will guide the data analysis. Phase 1 will be followed by the actual implementation and evaluation phase (36 months) in which three intervention conditions are compared: (1) standard intervention; (2) enhanced motivation intervention; and (3) enhanced negotiation intervention among the comparison groups. The interventions will include five intensive individual encounters between the women and their community health interventionist. The enhanced interventions will be guided by respectively motivational interviewing and the health negotiation model (derived from sociopsychological theories addressing behavior change such as the theory of reasoned action, the theory of planned behavior, the health belief model, and the transtheoretical model of behavioral change). A randomized block design will be used to allocate women to one of the intervention conditions. Phase 2 data collection includes: two-part pre-intervention interviews, including HIV counseling and testing, post-intervention interviews, and 6-month follow-up interviews, including HIV counseling and testing. Data analysis will include ANOVAs with orthogonal a priori group contrasts and ANCOVAs and examinations of moderator and mediator variables via hierarchical multiple regression. The main goal of the proposed study is to develop gender-specific interventions for women at-risk for HIV infection.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
1R01DA010642-01A1
Application #
2331205
Study Section
Human Development Research Subcommittee (NIDA)
Project Start
1997-06-01
Project End
2001-05-31
Budget Start
1997-06-01
Budget End
1998-05-31
Support Year
1
Fiscal Year
1997
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
Emory University
Department
Miscellaneous
Type
Schools of Public Health
DUNS #
042250712
City
Atlanta
State
GA
Country
United States
Zip Code
30322
Depadilla, Lara; Perkins, Molly M; Elifson, Kirk W et al. (2012) Adult criminal involvement: A cross-sectional inquiry into correlates and mechanisms over the life course. Crim Justice Rev 37:
Sterk, Claire E; Elifson, Kirk W; Theall, Katherine P (2007) Individual action and community context: the Health Intervention Project. Am J Prev Med 32:S177-81
Elifson, Kirk W; Sterk, Claire E; Theall, Katherine P (2007) Safe living: the impact of unstable housing conditions on HIV risk reduction among female drug users. AIDS Behav 11:45-55
Theall, Katherine P; Elifson, Kirk W; Sterk, Claire E et al. (2007) Criminality among female drug users following an HIV risk-reduction intervention. J Interpers Violence 22:85-107
Sterk, Claire E; Theall, Katherine P; Elifson, Kirk W (2006) The impact of emotional distress on HIV risk reduction among women. Subst Use Misuse 41:157-73
Gentry, Quinn M; Elifson, Kirk; Sterk, Claire (2005) Aiming for more relevant HIV risk reduction: a black feminist perspective for enhancing HIV intervention for low-income African American women. AIDS Educ Prev 17:238-52
Sterk, Claire E; Theall, Katherine; Elifson, Kirk W (2005) African American female drug users and HIV risk reduction challenges with criminal involvement. J Health Care Poor Underserved 16:89-107
Theall, Katherine P; Sterk, Claire E; Elifson, Kirk W (2004) Past and new victimization among African American female drug users who participated in an HIV risk-reduction intervention. J Sex Res 41:400-7
Sterk, Claire E; Theall, Katherine P; Elifson, Kirk W et al. (2003) HIV risk reduction among African-American women who inject drugs: a randomized controlled trial. AIDS Behav 7:73-86
Theall, Katherine P; Sterk, Claire E; Elifson, Kirk W et al. (2003) Factors associated with positive HIV serostatus among women who use drugs: continued evidence for expanding factors of influence. Public Health Rep 118:415-24

Showing the most recent 10 out of 16 publications