Responsibility as a dimension of HIV prevention normative beliefs: measurement in three drug-using samples
Loading...
Date
2007
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
AIDS care
Abstract
The concept of responsibility was derived originally from principles of morality, as part of
a network of rights, duties and obligations. HIV risk-related studies have suggested that
a sense of responsibility for condom use to protect a partner is a potentially important
predictor of condom use in drug-using populations. We created a four-item scale
measuring Self responsibility to use condoms and Partner's responsibility to use
condoms. Data were collected from three drug-using samples: crack smokers, HIV
seropositive crack smokers in an intervention study in Houston, Texas, and Tanzanian
heroin users in Dar es Salaam. Data indicated that the four responsibility items had high
alpha coefficients in each sample, and that there were moderate to high
intercorrelations between equivalent self and partner responsibility items. There were
significant differences in scale scores between the crack smokers and the HIV positive
crack smokers and the Tanzanian samples, but no significant differences between the
HIV positive and Tanzanian samples. Comparing within the first crack-smoker sample
those who were HIV positive and negative showed significant differences in the
direction of higher beliefs in responsibility to use condoms in the HIV positive group.
These data suggest that responsibility is measurable, holds similar psychometric
properties across three samples differing in culture and HIV serostatus, and that
condom use responsibility is conceptualized as a measure of general responsibility
rather than as a reciprocal self/partner responsibility.
Description
Keywords
HIV prevention, Drug-using
Citation
Ross, M.W., Timpson, S.C., Williams, M.L., Amos, C., McCurdy, S., Bowen, A.M. and Kilonzo, G.P., 2007. Responsibility as a dimension of HIV prevention normative beliefs: measurement in three drug-using samples. AIDS care, 19(3), pp.403-409.