[AIDS and social situations of women in Africa: from notions to research methods].
When researchers or actors intend to analyse women's situations in the context of AIDS in Africa, they are conducted to take into account the whole context these women live in: their access to care and prevention, their ability to make choices in their emotional, sexual and marital life, their access to education and to a gainful employment. It is also important in such an approach to define precisely the notions used. This paper proposes first to describe the several realities existing under the notions of vulnerability, autonomy, negotiation, sexuality, prostitution, motherhood and mother and child health. Through examples from researches conducted in Côte d'Ivoire and in other African countries, we enlighten how stereotypes are still used to describe women's situations in Africa. We insist on the need to propose fine-tuned and balanced analyses, in order to avoid sweeping generalisations that are harmful to women themselves. Secondly, we describe the methodological tools that can be used in this kind of analysis of notions and contexts in gender relations. We describe qualitative and quantitative survey techniques. For each one, we emphasise their requirements but also their effects on our research process on women's experiences facing AIDS.
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IRD UR Socioanthropologie de la santé, BP 5045, 34032 Montpellier Cedex, France.
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D000163:Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome / Q000635:transmission; D000328:Adult; D000349:Africa; D003267:Contraception; D003625:Data Collection; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000635:transmission; D006679:HIV Seropositivity; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008429:Maternal Welfare; D011247:Pregnancy; D012106:Research; D012424:Rural Population; D011477:Sex Work; D019529:Sexuality; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013240:Stereotyping; D014505:Urban Population; D014930:Women; D016387:Women's Health