title: Disclosure Pattern of Self-Labeled People Living with HIV/AIDS on Chinese Social Networking Site: An Exploratory Study.
abstract: HIV/AIDS is an important public health issue in China. The number of people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) has been increasing since the introduction of highly active antiretroviral therapy. PLWHA's life quality is becoming an important issue, with lack of research in China. In this study, a group of PLWHA (n = 663) was identified using HIV/AIDS relevant usernames on a Chinese social networking site (Weibo) to study their daily living situations. We found that more than 99.10% of PLWHA were male, among whom 90.80% turned out to be homosexual. They had significantly more fans and followees, but fewer postings compared to the general population. The mean age of the PLWHA was 28.96 (SD = 5.05) years old, and southwest and northwest China had a high prevalence of HIV/AIDS. In addition, PLWHA's postings were coded and we found that more than half of the postings (n = 769, 51.03%) contained strong emotions. Less than one-fifth of the postings were directly related to HIV/AIDS topics (n = 269, 17.85%), while seeking emotional support, such as looking for stable partnership, was ranked as the first priority of support seeking. In summary, we found that the majority of the self-labeled PLWHA were likely to be men who have sex with men. They used Weibo to share their daily life events and seek emotional support. Implications for promoting HIV/AIDS education and prevention through Chinese social networking sites were also discussed.
authors: 1 National Institute for Mental Health Research, Research School of Population Health, The Australian National University , Canberra, Australia .
authors: Jin
authors: J
authors: Han
authors: 2 School of Management, Harbin Institute of Technology , Harbin, P.R. China .
authors: Xianyun
authors: X
authors: Tian
authors: 2 School of Management, Harbin Institute of Technology , Harbin, P.R. China .
authors: Guang
authors: G
authors: Yu
authors: 2 School of Management, Harbin Institute of Technology , Harbin, P.R. China .
authors: Fang
authors: F
authors: He
mesh_terms: D000163:Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome / Q000523:psychology*; D000328:Adult; D002681:China; D005260:Female; D018451:Homosexuality, Male / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D061108:Social Media / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D060756:Social Networking; D012944:Social Support; D014342:Truth Disclosure; D055815:Young Adult