Social representations of HIV/AIDS by older people and the interface with prevention

ABSTRACT Objective: To apprehend the social representations elaborated by older people about HIV/AIDS and to understand how they relate to the prevention of HIV infection. Method: Descriptive and qualitative research based on the Theory of Social Representations with 42 older people assisted at primary care. Data were produced through in-depth interviews with a semi-structured instrument, processed in the IRaMuTeQ software, and analyzed by means of the descending hierarchical classification. Results: Five classes emerged: “HIV/AIDS: a problem of young people”; “Quality of life improvement for people living with HIV/AIDS”; “Vulnerability to HIV/AIDS among heterosexual women in a stable union”; “HIV/AIDS Information Network: process of creation and transformation of social representations” and “Prevention versus stigma”. Final considerations: The social representations that older people have about HIV/AIDS influence the adoption of preventive measures negatively because stigma is present and HIV/AIDS is attributed to young men, and to men who have sex with other men.

摘要 研究目的：明晰老年群体对艾滋病（HIV/AIDS）所构建的社会表征，并探究其与艾滋病病毒（HIV）感染预防行为之间的关联。研究方法：本研究为基于社会表征（Social Representations）理论的描述性定性研究，纳入42名在基层医疗卫生机构接受照护的老年人作为研究对象。数据通过采用半结构化访谈提纲的深度访谈采集，采用IRaMuTeQ软件进行数据处理，并借助层级递降分类法开展分析。研究结果：共提炼出五类社会表征，分别为：“艾滋病：仅为年轻人的问题”、“艾滋病感染者生活质量改善”、“稳定伴侣关系中的异性恋女性群体的艾滋病感染脆弱性”、“艾滋病信息网络：社会表征的构建与转化过程”以及“预防与污名化”。研究结论：老年群体对艾滋病所持有的社会表征会对其采取预防措施产生负面影响，究其根源在于艾滋病相关污名的存在，且社会将艾滋病归因于青年男性与男男性行为人群。