African American men have
the highest rates of HIV in the
USA, and research has shown that stigma, mistrust of health care, and other psychosocial
factors interfere with optimal engagement in care with this population.
In order
to further understand reducing stigma and other psychosocial issues among African
American men, we conducted qualitative interviews and focus groups
with African American men in two
metropolitan areas in the USA: Chicago and Seattle. We examined transcripts for
relationships across variables of stigma, anonymity, self-identity, and space within
the context of HIV.
Our analysis pointed to similarities between experiences
of stigma across the two cities and illustrated the relationships between space,
isolation, and preferred anonymity related to living with HIV. The men in our
study often preferred that their HIV-linked identities remain invisible and anonymous,
associated with perceived and created isolation from physical community spaces.
This article suggests that our health care and housing institutions may influence preferences
for anonymity.
We make recommendations in key areas to create safer spaces for African
American men living
with HIV and reduce
feelings of stigma and isolation.
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By:
- 1Department of Medical Social Sciences, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA.
- 2School of Urban Public Health, Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY), New York, NY, USA.
- 3Department of Global Health, University of Washington, Box 359931, 325 9th Ave, Seattle, WA, 98104, USA.
- 4Department of Global Health, University of Washington, Box 359931, 325 9th Ave, Seattle, WA, 98104, USA. deeparao@uw.edu.
- J Racial Ethn Health Disparities. 2015 Dec;2(4):548-55. doi: 10.1007/s40615-015-0103-1. Epub 2015 Apr 1.
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