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

Abstract #117060

Linda Hock-Long, PhD, Amy Cassidy, and Matthew Berger, MA. Research Department, Family Planning Council, 260 South Broad Street, Suite 1000, Philadelphia, PA 19102, 215-985-2623, linda@familyplanning.org

Steady increases in heterosexual transmission of HIV coupled with disproportionately high HIV/STI rates among minority populations underscore the need for culturally relevant, evidence-based interventions rooted in an understanding of how men and women communicate with their sexual partners about issues such as personal sexual values and barrier contraception use. This session provides an overview of the ways in which a CDC-funded study, Project PHRESH.comm, has utilized two systematic cultural assessment techniques - free-listing and pile-sorts - to inform the development of HIV/STI prevention approaches that will be implemented and tested in minority communities in Hartford and Philadelphia. The session will begin with an overview of the benefits of using free-lists and pile-sorts to explore sensitive public health topics such as sexual behaviors and partner communications. Next, findings obtained through 16 focus groups (n = 145) will be presented to illustrate the ways in which free-listing can help elicit valuable information regarding terms used by members of the target population to describe sexual behaviors and the ways in which they categorize these behaviors. Results of pile-sorts conducted with 120 participants will then be used to demonstrate how this methodology can provide additional insight into such issues as perceived behavioral risks and the relationship contexts within which risky behaviors and partner communications occur. The session will conclude with a discussion of how Project PHRESH.comm free-list and pile-sort findings will be used to guide the development of culturally meaningful HIV/STI prevention strategies.

Learning Objectives: At the end of this presentation, attendees will be able to

• Identify ways in which free-listing can be used to elicit locally relevant terms and meanings regarding sensitive public health domains.
• Identify ways in which pile-sorting can build upon free-list activities by yielding additional information on domain-specific knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors from the vantage point of the population of interest.
• Articulate examples of how free-list and pile-sort findings can help to shape culturally relevant HIV/STI prevention approaches.

Keywords: Reproductive Health Research, Communication

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.

Recorded presentation