title: In their own voices: rural African American youth speak out about community-based HIV prevention interventions.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The HIV epidemic is a major public health problem in the United States, particularly among rural African American adolescents and young adults.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  We sought to explore young, rural African American's perspectives about key programmatic components to consider when designing youth-targeted, community- based HIV prevention interventions.
  
  
  METHODS
  We report data from four focus groups with adolescents and young adults aged 16 to 24 (n = 38) conducted as part of a community-based participatory research (CBPR) project designed to develop multilevel HIV risk reduction interventions in two rural North Carolina communities with high HIV rates. Analysis was performed by academic and community partners using a modified grounded theory approach to content analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Interventions should target preadolescents and early adolescents rather than older adolescents and young adults in an effort to "catch them while they're young." Intervention developers should obtain input from local young people regarding critical programmatic components, such as whom to employ as study recruiters and intervention leaders; intervention format and delivery options, acceptable recruitment and intervention locations, and incentive structures. Participants believe selecting community collaborators representing varied community sectors is critical. Important barriers to address included limited transportation, discomfort communicating about sexual issues, lack of community interest in HIV prevention, and unwillingness to acknowledge and address sexual activity among adolescents.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  When designing HIV/AIDS prevention interventions, targeting young people, it is important to form academic-community partnerships that ensure young people's perspectives are integral to the intervention development process.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Georgetown University School of Medicine, USA.
authors.forename: Dionne Smith
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Coker-Appiah
authors.forename: Aletha Y
authors.initials: AY
authors.lastname: Akers
authors.forename: Bahby
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Banks
authors.forename: Tashuna
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Albritton
authors.forename: Karyn
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Leniek
authors.forename: Mysha
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wynn
authors.forename: Selena E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Youmans
authors.forename: Donald
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Parker
authors.forename: Arlinda
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ellison
authors.forename: Stacey
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Henderson
authors.forename: Doris
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Stith
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Council
authors.forename: Patricia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Oxendine-Pitt
authors.forename: Giselle
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Corbie-Smith
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American; D019058:Community Networks / Q000458:organization & administration*; D055812:Community-Based Participatory Research; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006266:Health Education; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D054624:Health Status Disparities; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009657:North Carolina / Q000453:epidemiology; D015397:Program Evaluation; D036301:Qualitative Research; D040242:Risk Reduction Behavior; D019035:Rural Health Services / Q000458:organization & administration*; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000208:ethnology; D055815:Young Adult