Too few AIDS Prevention Programs exist to help low-income African American women though they are at increasingly high risk for contracting AIDS. This study will assess the impact of a six-session AIDS Prevention Program for low-income inner city African American women on these outcome variables: awareness of norms governing male-female relationships; attitudes related to condom use; STD, AIDS, and condom knowledge; self- efficacy to adhere to a decision to use condoms; increase in low risk AIDS behavior; commitment to enhance the health status of their community; and perceived vulnerability. The AIDS intervention is based on a theoretical framework that unites social learning theory and a primary health care community-based peer education model of service delivery. The content of the intervention integrates self-efficacy and behavior skills acquired through modeling and performance accomplishment (Bandura's social cognitive theory), perception of social norms related to the proposed behavior and attitude about the behavior (Fishbein & Ajzen's theory of reasoned action), and perceived vulnerability to health threat (Janz & Becker's health belief model). It utilizes a videotape that addresses contextual variables (behavior and situations) that have been proven to be relevant for this target population. A primary health care approach of collaboration with community residents promotes acceptability of the intervention. An interrupted time series design with extended posttest observations and switching replication will be used to systematically investigate the effectiveness of this program. The design is strengthened by adding extended posttest observations at 3, 6, and 9 months after intervention and switching replication. After the nine-month follow-up, the two interventions will be switched so that women will receive both the AIDS Prevention intervention and the control Health Maintenance Intervention at the completion of the research project. If follow-up observations consistently change from pretest levels in the expected direction, the case for causal inference in favor of the AIDS intervention is strengthened. One hundred and thirty-three women will be recruited from each of two geographically distinct but environmentally and demographically similar communities in Chicago. Female peer leaders from each community will be trained to deliver the interventions. Multivariate repeated measures analysis of variance will be used to test the hypotheses. This project will bridge gaps in current research on how to tailor AIDS intervention programs for inner city women. In addition, the project will provide data on the long-term effects of this tailored intervention.
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| Dancy, B L; Marcantonio, R; Norr, K (2000) The long-term effectiveness of an HIV prevention intervention for low-income African American women. AIDS Educ Prev 12:113-25 |
| Dancy, B (2000) HIV risk reduction strategies for low-income African American women. Nurse Pract Forum 11:109-15 |
