Randomized trial to measure the effect of personalized normative feedback about local HIV testing rates and local rates of HIV-related stigma on self-reported HIV testing intentions and perceptions about others' HIV testing intentions.
HIV testing is a vital step in identifying and treating HIV. Research in rural Uganda reveals underestimation of community HIV testing rates and overestimation of HIV-related stigma among adults. At the same time, perceived norms (i.e., estimated rates regardless of their accuracy) are associated with personal HIV testing behavior and personal HIV-related attitudes. This study employs a randomized controlled trial to evaluate how providing accurate information about local descriptive (i.e., behavioral) norms and local injunctive (i.e., attitudinal) norms affect HIV testing intentions. Participants are randomly assigned to one of four treatment arms: (1) they are reminded of what they thought community testing rates were in their village and then receive accurate information about high community testing rates, (2) they are reminded of what they thought local stigma rates were in their village and then receive accurate information about positive community perceptions of persons with HIV, (3) they are reminded of what they thought community testing rates and local stigma rates were in their village and then receive both types of accurate normative information, or (4) they are reminded of what they thought community testing rates were in their village and receive no further information (control group). The study assesses how providing this type of personalized normative feedback within cohort-based data collection affects personal reports about getting tested for HIV in the next 12 months and how it affects perceptions about how many men and women in the same village will get tested for HIV in the next 12 months. It is hypothesized that providing accurate information about local community testing rates and/or attitudes toward persons with HIV will increase reported personal willingness to get tested (primary outcome) and improve the accuracy of estimated community testing rates in the future (secondary outcome).
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
SINGLE
Enrollment
1,300
Each version of the questionnaire has similar questions about personal HIV testing intentions and perceived norms about other men and women's HIV testing intentions. The content of the prompt presented prior to the questions varies based on treatment arm. This version does not provide any normative feedback information.
Each version of the questionnaire has similar questions about personal HIV testing intentions and perceived norms about other men and women's HIV testing intentions. The content of the prompt presented prior to the questions varies based on treatment arm. This version provides personalized normative feedback with descriptive norms information about local HIV testing rates.
Mbarara University of Science and Technology
Mbarara, Uganda
Self-reported HIV testing intention in the next 12 months
Regarding yourself, how likely are you to go get tested for HIV in the next 12 months? (single item)
Time frame: Baseline (assessed at the time the survey is administered)
Self-reported perception of HIV testing among men in one's village
How many of these men do you think will go get tested for HIV in the next 12 months? (single item)
Time frame: Baseline (assessed at the time the survey is administered)
Self-reported perception of HIV testing among women in one's village
How many of these women do you think will go get tested for HIV in the next 12 months? Read all response options audibly, except for refuses/do not know. (single item)
Time frame: Baseline (assessed at the time the survey is administered)
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Each version of the questionnaire has similar questions about personal HIV testing intentions and perceived norms about other men and women's HIV testing intentions. The content of the prompt presented prior to the questions varies based on treatment arm. This version provides personalized normative feedback with injunctive norms information about local HIV stigma rates.
Each version of the questionnaire has similar questions about personal HIV testing intentions and perceived norms about other men and women's HIV testing intentions. The content of the prompt presented prior to the questions varies based on treatment arm. This version provides personalized normative feedback with descriptive and injunctive norms information about both local HIV testing rates and local HIV stigma rates.