title: Selective disclosure of HIV status in egocentric support networks of people living with HIV/AIDS.
abstract: The objective of this study was to investigate HIV disclosure activities in social support networks of people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHAs). An egocentric network study was conducted in Nanning, China. A sample of 147 PLWHAs (egos) nominated 922 network members (alters) who would provide egos with social support. All egos disclosed their HIV status to at least one alter in their support networks and 26.5 % disclosed to all alters. Among network alters, 95.7 % of spouse alters, 59.9 % of other family member alters, and 29.7 % of friend alters were aware of egos' HIV status. PLWHA egos were more likely to disclose their HIV status to their spouse and other family members, frequently-contacted alters, and alters who provided more social support. In addition, older egos and unmarried egos were more likely to disclose their HIV status. The findings indicate that network-based HIV intervention programs should take into consideration selective disclosure in social networks.
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, University of Maryland College Park, 2234A School of Public Health Building, College Park, MD, 20742, USA.
authors.forename: Chunpeng
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Zang
authors.forename: Xin
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: Hongjie
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology* / Q000635:transmission; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D040242:Risk Reduction Behavior; D012747:Sexual Partners / Q000523:psychology*; D060756:Social Networking; D057545:Social Stigma; D012944:Social Support; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014342:Truth Disclosure