Correlates of relationship, psychological, and sexual behavioral factors for HIV risk among Indian women.
The rate of HIV/AIDS among women in India is expected to rise yet few studies have examined factors related to HIV risk among Indian women. The objective of this prospective, cross-sectional study was to characterize similarities and differences in the relationships, psychological well-being, and sexual behaviors among Indian women (N=459). Both HIV positive (N=216) and negative (N=243) women from urban and rural areas in India were included in this study. Chi-square, analysis of variance, and logistic regression analyses revealed that in both geographic groups, HIV-positive women were significantly more likely to report marital dissatisfaction, a history of forced sex, domestic violence, depressive symptoms and husband's extra marital sex when compared to the HIV-negative women. Findings also indicate that specific factors related to the quality of the marital relationship such as domestic violence, martial dysfunction, and depressive symptoms may be related to HIV-related risks for women. Implications for future research and culturally relevant interventions are discussed.
Gupta
R N
RN
Indian Council of Medical Research, Division of Reproductive Health and Nutrition, New Delhi, India.
Wyatt
Gail E
GE
Swaminathan
Soumya
S
Rewari
B B
BB
Locke
Thomas F
TF
Ranganath
Vijayalakshmi
V
Sumner
Lekeisha A
LA
Liu
Honghu
H
D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D007194:India / Q000453:epidemiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D012309:Risk-Taking; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000523:psychology*