Stigma against people with HIV/AIDS in rural Ethiopia, 2005 to 2011: signs and predictors of improvement.
This study sought to determine trends in and factors associated with stigma against people with HIV/AIDS in Ethiopia. Rural data from the 2005 and 2011 Demographic and Health Surveys were analyzed. HIV testing rates among males increased dramatically from 2005 to 2011 (8-35 %). Among females, testing rates dropped 10 % during the same period. HIV knowledge was associated with stigma, shown by a negative correlation in both data waves, but groups with higher knowledge tended to have lower stigma. Lower levels of knowledge were uniformly associated with higher levels of stigma, but higher levels of knowledge, combined with higher levels of education, were associated with lower levels of stigma in a multiplicative way. Improvements in knowledge can serve as an important intermediate process to behavior change. The found interaction suggests improvements in either education or knowledge can reduce stigma, and when both are improved, stigma reduction will be more dramatic.
Department of Health Education, College of Public Health and Medical Sciences, Jimma University, PO Box 5093, Jimma, Ethiopia, grm_sht@yahoo.com.
Eshetu
E
Girma
Lakew Abebe
LA
Gebretsadik
Michelle R
MR
Kaufman
Rajiv N
RN
Rimal
Sudhakar N
SN
Morankar
Rupali J
RJ
Limaye
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005002:Ethiopia / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D011247:Pregnancy; D036301:Qualitative Research; D012424:Rural Population; D057545:Social Stigma; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors