Skip Navigation


Health Promotion International Advance Access originally published online on March 29, 2005
Health Promotion International 2005 20(3):249-259; doi:10.1093/heapro/dai005
This Article
Right arrow Full Text Freely available
Right arrow FREE Full Text (PDF) Freely available
Right arrow All Versions of this Article:
20/3/249    most recent
dai005v1
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow Search for citing articles in:
ISI Web of Science (1)
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Right arrow Disclaimer
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Pallikadavath, S.
Right arrow Articles by Stones, R. W.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Pallikadavath, S.
Right arrow Articles by Stones, R. W.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?


© The Author 2005. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oupjournals.org

Rural women's knowledge of AIDS in the higher prevalence states of India: reproductive health and sociocultural correlates

Saseendran Pallikadavath1, Abdoulie Sanneh2, Jenny M. Mcwhirter3 and R. William Stones1

1‘Opportunities and Choices’ Programme of Reproductive Health Research, 2Research and Graduate School of Education, University of Southampton and 3Department of Health and Human Sciences, University of Essex, UK

Address for correspondence: R. William Stones, Level F(815), Princess Anne Hospital, Southampton SO16 5YA, UK E-mail: r.w.stones{at}soton.ac.uk

This study aimed to identify socio-cultural and reproductive health correlates of knowledge about AIDS among rural women using multivariate analysis of 1998–1999 National Family Health Survey (NFHS) data from two Indian states, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu, where the urban HIV prevalence is relatively high. Analysis using multiple logistic regression was undertaken, modelling women's knowledge of AIDS, of whether the disease can be avoided, and of effective means of protection. Although 47% of all rural women in Maharashtra were aware of AIDS only about 28% knew that one can avoid it, and only about 16% possessed correct knowledge about its transmission. In Tamil Nadu, where overall 82% of rural women had awareness of AIDS, about 71% knew that one can avoid the disease but only about 31% possessed correct knowledge about its transmission. In both states, women from socially and economically backward groups had lower odds both of having awareness of AIDS and knowledge of ways to avoid getting the disease. Associations with socio-cultural and reproductive variables and the impact of contact with family planning services differed in the two states. The spread of the epidemic to rural areas presents a need actively to disseminate AIDS related knowledge for health protection rather than waiting for knowledge to follow the appearance of the disease in communities. Approaches to health promotion that do not consider differing contextual factors are unlikely to succeed. In particular, innovative strategies to disseminate knowledge among disadvantaged population groups are needed.

Key words: reproductive health; demography; women; Asia; HIV/AIDS


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 J Int Assoc Physicians AIDS Care (Chic Ill)Home page
A. D. Meundi, A. Amma, A. Rao, S. Shetty, and A. K. Shetty
Cross-Sectional Population-Based Study of Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices Regarding HIV/AIDS in Dakshina Kannada District of Karnataka, India
J Int Assoc Physicians AIDS Care (Chic Ill), February 1, 2008; 7(1): 27 - 34.
[Abstract] [PDF]


Disclaimer:
Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.