The HIV epidemic in China has been described as a sleeping giant that is beginning to stir. Injection drug use has been identified as a significant factor in the spread of HIV/AIDS in China, which more than 70 percent of accumulative cases are IDUs. To date, research on HIV and related health risks among drug users in China has emphasized survey and surveillance methods that effectively reveal the extent of many key behaviors of concern. However, thus far there has been only limited qualitative and ethnographic assessment of HIV risk among IDUs in China. This fact results in a narrow base upon which to assess actual """"""""on-the-ground"""""""" risk behaviors, specific contexts of risk and risk promotion, pathways of risk diffusion, and the precise nature of the social, environmental, structural and cultural factors that promote or retard risk behaviors among Chinese IDUs. The proposed pilot study attempts to develop a comparative examination of social, cultural, and environmental factors in syringe sharing behavior among IDUs in Guangdong, China.
The specific aims of the study are as follows: 1) To examine the full range and relative importance of various factors (cultural, social, environmental, economic and knowledge) that may contribute to sharing of syringe and other injection equipment (e.g., cookers, water). 2) To understand sociocultural beliefs, meanings, and understandings that underlie sharing generally and with specific reference to injection equipment, among study participants. 3) To test the feasibility of recruiting active out-treatment IDUs through: a) network method (snow ball sampling) - testing sample 1; b) community outreach - testing sample 2; 4) To use study findings to develop specific research-based and culturally informed recommendations for developing a larger study focusing on understanding syringe sharing behaviors and HIV prevention among IDUs in China.
