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Relationship between HIV Stigma and Self-Isolation among People Living with HIV in Tennessee

INTRODUCTION: HIV stigma is a contributing factor to poor patient outcomes. Although HIV stigma has been documented, its impact on patient well-being in the southern US is not well understood. METHODS: Thirty-two adults participated in cognitive interviews after completing the Berger HIV or the Van...

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Autores principales: Audet, Carolyn M., McGowan, Catherine C., Wallston, Kenneth A., Kipp, Aaron M.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Public Library of Science 2013
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3738573/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23950897
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0069564
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author Audet, Carolyn M.
McGowan, Catherine C.
Wallston, Kenneth A.
Kipp, Aaron M.
author_facet Audet, Carolyn M.
McGowan, Catherine C.
Wallston, Kenneth A.
Kipp, Aaron M.
author_sort Audet, Carolyn M.
collection PubMed
description INTRODUCTION: HIV stigma is a contributing factor to poor patient outcomes. Although HIV stigma has been documented, its impact on patient well-being in the southern US is not well understood. METHODS: Thirty-two adults participated in cognitive interviews after completing the Berger HIV or the Van Rie stigma scale. Participant responses were probed to ensure the scales accurately measured stigma and to assess the impact stigma had on behavior. RESULTS: Three main themes emerged regarding HIV stigma: (1) negative attitudes, fear of contagion, and misperceptions about transmission; (2) acts of discrimination by families, friends, health care providers, and within the workplace; and (3) participants’ use of self-isolation as a coping mechanism. Overwhelming reluctance to disclose a person’s HIV status made identifying enacted stigma with a quantitative scale difficult. DISCUSSION: Fear of discrimination resulted in participants isolating themselves from friends or experiences to avoid disclosure. Participant unwillingness to disclose their HIV status to friends and family could lead to an underestimation of enacted HIV stigma in quantitative scales.
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spelling pubmed-37385732013-08-15 Relationship between HIV Stigma and Self-Isolation among People Living with HIV in Tennessee Audet, Carolyn M. McGowan, Catherine C. Wallston, Kenneth A. Kipp, Aaron M. PLoS One Research Article INTRODUCTION: HIV stigma is a contributing factor to poor patient outcomes. Although HIV stigma has been documented, its impact on patient well-being in the southern US is not well understood. METHODS: Thirty-two adults participated in cognitive interviews after completing the Berger HIV or the Van Rie stigma scale. Participant responses were probed to ensure the scales accurately measured stigma and to assess the impact stigma had on behavior. RESULTS: Three main themes emerged regarding HIV stigma: (1) negative attitudes, fear of contagion, and misperceptions about transmission; (2) acts of discrimination by families, friends, health care providers, and within the workplace; and (3) participants’ use of self-isolation as a coping mechanism. Overwhelming reluctance to disclose a person’s HIV status made identifying enacted stigma with a quantitative scale difficult. DISCUSSION: Fear of discrimination resulted in participants isolating themselves from friends or experiences to avoid disclosure. Participant unwillingness to disclose their HIV status to friends and family could lead to an underestimation of enacted HIV stigma in quantitative scales. Public Library of Science 2013-08-08 /pmc/articles/PMC3738573/ /pubmed/23950897 http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0069564 Text en © 2013 Audet et al http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are properly credited.
spellingShingle Research Article
Audet, Carolyn M.
McGowan, Catherine C.
Wallston, Kenneth A.
Kipp, Aaron M.
Relationship between HIV Stigma and Self-Isolation among People Living with HIV in Tennessee
title Relationship between HIV Stigma and Self-Isolation among People Living with HIV in Tennessee
title_full Relationship between HIV Stigma and Self-Isolation among People Living with HIV in Tennessee
title_fullStr Relationship between HIV Stigma and Self-Isolation among People Living with HIV in Tennessee
title_full_unstemmed Relationship between HIV Stigma and Self-Isolation among People Living with HIV in Tennessee
title_short Relationship between HIV Stigma and Self-Isolation among People Living with HIV in Tennessee
title_sort relationship between hiv stigma and self-isolation among people living with hiv in tennessee
topic Research Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3738573/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23950897
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0069564
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