Talking about AIDS

Christoph Bühler and Hans-Peter Kohler
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Christoph Bühler: Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Universität Hannover
Hans-Peter Kohler: University of Pennsylvania

Demographic Research Special Collections, 2003, vol. 1, issue 13, 397-438

Abstract: This paper explores the significance of social relationships to two important stages in the process of sexual behavioral change in response to increased HIV/AIDS risk in rural Africa: the perceived risk of becoming HIV-infected through unprotected sexual intercourse and the preferred methods of protection either through sexual fidelity, or through condom use. The empirical analyses are based on cross-sectional data from the 'Kenyan Diffusion and Ideational Change Project' (KDICP) which provides information about AIDS-related, ego-centered communication networks of Kenyan men and women. The results show that perceived risks, as well as preferred methods of protection against HIV-infection, depend in general on the prevailing perceptions and favored protective methods within personal communication networks. However, different influential network properties can be found. The risk-perceptions of women are shaped by strong relationships and cohesive network structures. Male's risk perception depends more on the number of risk-perceivers in their communication networks. Heterogeneous relationships of various kinds are influential on women's and men's probability of favoring sexual faithfulness as a method of protection against HIV-infection.

Keywords: communication networks; risk behaviors; prevention; Kenya; HIV/AIDS (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J1 Z0 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2003
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (9)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:dem:drspec:v:1:y:2003:i:13

DOI: 10.4054/DemRes.2003.S1.13

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