title: HIV stigma and the experiences of young men with voluntary and routine HIV testing.
abstract: As routine HIV testing approaches are implemented to enhance participation rates in HIV testing, it is often widely believed that these approaches are socially and ethically justifiable given the underlying assumption that these practices will result in the widespread reduction of HIV-related stigma. Nonetheless, a variety of empirical and theoretical gaps on how HIV testing practices may impact on HIV stigma remain, raising questions about the social underpinnings of the public health rationale. We draw on 50 interviews with 18-24 year-old men to determine how HIV-related stigma is experienced differentially across subgroups of young men in relation to both voluntary and routine testing practices. The men's experiences with routine testing highlight how (mis)interpretations of universal, routine testing practices may serve to (unintentionally) burden disadvantaged subgroups of men; however, when these practices are adequately explicated, the universal dimension of a routine offer greatly diminished these concerns. These findings also show that, under the right conditions, a routine offer can provide transformative opportunities for individuals to reconceptualise their expectations over HIV and HIV-related stigma.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Health Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada.|British Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS, Vancouver, Canada.|School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia, Canada.
authors.forename: Rod
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Knight
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Health Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada.|British Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS, Vancouver, Canada.
authors.forename: Will
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Small
authors.affiliation: School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia, Canada.
authors.forename: Jean A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Shoveller
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002170:Canada; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000523:psychology*; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D011634:Public Health; D057545:Social Stigma; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: HIV; public health; screening; stigma