Despite the disproportionately high rates of heterosexually transmitted HIV infection among AfricanAmericans and ongoing need for effective inexpensive behavioral interventions, no published research hasexamined the use of sermons as an HIV prevention tool in black churches. Recently published data thatunderscore the importance of sexual network patterns and social context in the epidemiology of heterosexualHIV infection among African Americans have broadened the range of potentially effective HIV preventionmessages. We propose to use the faith-based research network of black Christian churches in NorthCarolina convened by the Carolina Shaw Partnership to form a pastor work group that will use principles ofcommunity-based participatory research to develop sermon-based messages to decrease heterosexual riskbehaviors.We will: 1) conduct in-depth qualitative interviews among the network pastors to determine the extent andnature of comments concerning sexual behavior in their sermons at baseline and assess their perception ofbarriers to their incorporating prevention messages into their sermons; 2) work with the pastors to developculturally appropriate HIV prevention messages for pastors to use in their sermons that are consonant withthe pastors' religious beliefs, are consistent with current public health research findings, and draw upon thepastors' insights; and 3) conduct additional qualitative interviews among the work group pastors as well aspastors of other black churches to test the acceptability and feasibility of pastors' incorporating into theirsermons the messages they develop.This project builds on our previous research concerning the epidemiology of heterosexual HIV transmissionamong African Americans in the South - and also builds on the existing infrastructure of the Carolina-ShawPartnership for the Elimination of Health Disparities (Project EXPORT). A future study will prospectivelyevaluate how often pastors actually do incorporate these messages and will ultimately evaluate their effecton rates of HIV and other STIs in black communities. Thus, the propose research constitutes a critical firststep in the development of an inexpensive, cost-effective HIV intervention that will use the strengths of theblack church to decrease sexual risk behaviors among African Americans.
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