title: HIV/AIDS stigma: measurement and relationships to psycho-behavioral factors in Latino gay/bisexual men and transgender women.
abstract: Despite the increased interest in HIV/AIDS stigma and its negative effects on the health and social support of people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA), little attention has been given to its assessment among Latino gay/ bisexual men and transgender women (GBT) living with HIV/AIDS. The purpose of this paper is twofold: to develop a multidimensional assessment of HIV/AIDS stigma for Latino GBT living with HIV/AIDS, and to test whether such stigma is related to self-esteem, safe sex self-efficacy, social support, and alcohol, and drug use. The sample included 170 HIV+ Latino GBT persons. The results revealed three dimensions of stigma: internalized, perceived, and enacted HIV/AIDS stigma. Enacted HIV/AIDS stigma comprised two domains: generalized and romantic and sexual. Generalized enacted HIV/AIDS stigma was related to most outcomes. Internalized HIV/AIDS stigma mediated the associations between generalized enacted HIV/AIDS stigma and self-esteem and safe sex self-efficacy. In addition, romantic and sexual enacted HIV/AIDS stigma significantly predicted drug use. Perceived HIV/AIDS stigma was not associated with any outcome. These findings expand the understanding of the multidimensionality of stigma and the manner in which various features impact marginalized PLWHA.
authors.affiliation: a Public Health Sciences , Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center , Seattle , WA , USA.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Molina
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ramirez-Valles
mesh_terms: D000163:Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome / Q000523:psychology; D000328:Adult; D000437:Alcoholism; D001727:Bisexuality / Q000523:psychology*; D002641:Chicago / Q000453:epidemiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000523:psychology*; D006630:Hispanic or Latino; D018451:Homosexuality, Male / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008913:Minority Groups; D021841:Safe Sex; D012495:San Francisco / Q000453:epidemiology; D012649:Self Concept; D020377:Self Efficacy; D057545:Social Stigma; D012944:Social Support; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders; D063106:Transgender Persons / Q000523:psychology*; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology