Relationship Between Resilience and the Intent to Practice HIV Prevention Strategies Among African American Women

The purpose of this on-going study is to determine the association of resilience as measured by the Resilience Scale (RS) and the intent to practice HIV prevention strategies as measured by the HIV Prevention Strategies Assessment (HPSA) among African American women. Historically, African American women have struggled with inequalities such as decision making, gender and power imbalances, and low self-esteem and self-efficacy which have proven to impact their sexual behavior ultimately making them more susceptable to acquiring HIV. Prior HIV and infectious disease researchers have studied resilience and protector factors in HIV infected persons however little has been done in regards to the role resilience plays in HIV prevention. A sample up to 200 HIV negative African American women, ages 25-44 that reside in Atlanta, Ga will be recruited. To examine the relationship between the independent (resilience) and dependent variable (intent to practice HIV prevention) descriptive statistics and chi-square analyses will be conducted. In exploring this problem, the theory of gender and power and social learning theory is applied. This study builds upon existing research that suggests applying resilience strategies, protector factors, and other multidimensional communication strategy approaches can be more effective in reaching at risk and high risk populations and has the potential to reduce HIV among these populations. This research will contribute to social change by informing the development of innovative HIV prevention strategies for women of color that aim to reduce HIV transmission among those most at-risk for acquiring HIV/AIDS. Preliminary data will be presented.