How does HIV knowledge, attitudes and behaviors of young adults in Arizona compare to those of China and Taiwan?
Author
Cox, AnalissaAffiliation
The University of Arizona College of Medicine - PhoenixIssue Date
2021
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The University of Arizona.Description
A Thesis submitted to The University of Arizona College of Medicine - Phoenix in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Medicine.Abstract
INTRODUCTION: The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) 2018 HIV Surveillance Report indicates that 13.6 per 100,000 people were diagnosed with HIV in the United States2. In Arizona specifically, this value was 12.7 per 100,000 in 20182. According to the Arizona Department of Health, groups most susceptible to contracting HIV in Arizona are African Americans, men, men having sex with men (MSM), and those ages 20-293. These data can be compared to countries, like China and Taiwan, that studied their college students using the International AIDS Questionnaire – English (IAQ-E). METHODS: The IAQ-E is a knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors (KAB) assessment that tells us the respondents’ level of understanding given different facts, myths, risks, and attitudes. We sought to assess the KAB of young Arizonans by presenting them with the IAQ-E and assessing respondents’ level of agreement using a Likert scale (strongly disagree =1 to strongly agree = 5). HYPOTHESIS: Based on Arizona’s sexual education curriculum and overall cultural stigma, we hypothesized that the results would show relatively moderate knowledge and negative attitudes and understanding of behaviors related to HIV/AIDS. RESULTS: The IAQ-E and demographic survey was distributed to college students in Arizona using Qualtrics, totaling 591 participants. The average age range was between 21-22, 77.2% biologically female, 19.9% biologically male and almost 3% non-binary/other or transgender, 2.2 % African American, and 22.84% identified with the LGBTQ community. Overall, students in Arizona have higher knowledge of HIV/AIDS compared to both China and Taiwan, and their attitudes were more positive than China, yet more negative than Taiwan. The behaviors showed positive understanding in all three groups, despite culture differences. Arizona participants exhibited increasing levels of understanding with increasing age (p <0.0001), increasing GPA (p <0.0001), and being married (p 0.002). CONCLUSION: The purpose of this project was to better understand the general knowledge, attitudes and behaviors regarding HIV/AIDS in young Arizonans and compare that to other countries. Understanding these differences can help design targeted public health interventions to decrease future transmission within the state and beyond.Type
ThesisPoster
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