Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #115038

Maranda C. Ward, MPH, Office of the Director, National Health Service Corp, Bureau of Health Professions, Health Resources and Services Administration, 5600 Fishers Lane, Parklawn Building, Room 8A-55, Rockville, MD 20857, 301-594-4394, wmaranda@hotmail.com

Background: Not only has recent research (Scholly, Katz, Gascoigne, & Holck, 2005) shown that college students are at an increased risk for HIV infection, but national statistics also confirm this finding (Kaiser Family Foundation, 2005). The purpose of this research was to explore the perceived risk of HIV infection among black college students at urban Historically Black Colleges/Universities (HBCUs). Social theory offered by Slovic, Fischhoff & Lichtenstein (1982) coupled with feminist theory presented by Gagnon & Smith (1973) will explain the relationship between attitudes on sex/sexuality and perceived vulnerability to HIV infection. Methods: The data were generated from the survey responses of a convenience sample of 82 black college students (mean age=19). Indices were constructed to measure complex attitudes such as liberal attitudes on sex and sexuality (3 items, Cronbach alpha= 0.7993), perceived vulnerability to HIV infection (3 items) and personal risk to HIV as compared to peers (5 items, Cronbach alpha= 0.784). The analysis was based on Pearson correlation coefficients. Basic frequencies and descriptive statistics were also run on each survey item. Results: There were strong and significant correlations between the liberal index score and perceived comparative risk index score and between perceived vulnerability and attitudes on HIV testing. Conclusions: Even with a small sample of college students, this research suggests that attitudes on sex and sexuality may be critical predictors of perceived vulnerability to HIV infection among young black college students. Researchers and educators must address the social context which frames the sexual experiences of this group.

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