INTERNET-BASED STD/HIV EDUCATION FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS

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This application proposes the development of an Internet-based college STD/HIV prevention program called eStudentbody.com (STDs/HIV). The program is designed to be offered through colleges and universities to help students minimize behaviors that predispose them to sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), including HIV. The program provides a tailoring approach to reducing risk behaviors, and utilizes interactive technology to offer information, peer stories, e-mail features, and resources geared toward STDs and HIV. Phase will involve the determination of the content and interface of the program through discussions with college students, college peer educators, and college health educators. We will develop a homepage, a personalized risk profit and one motivational feedback segment based on the risk profile. In Phase II we will produce the final website. A clinical field trial with the program will compare the interactive, tailored program with a typical text-based informational website. If such a program demonstrably reduces students' sexual risk behaviors, the commercial viability of this college health website could be assured. PROPOSED COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS: The proposed Internet-based program will provide a targeted intervention to reduce risk behaviors associated with STDs and HIV. Despite the high prevalence of STDs in college students, few programs offer a comprehensive, tailored approach to risk reduction. eStudentbody.com (STDs/HIV), if effective, will be of enormous value in preventing STDs and associated health consequences. There are over 14 million college students enrolled annually and students are among the most frequent users of the Internet. This program could be offered to a variety of institutions of higher education and supported by advertising. The commercial potential of such a program would be extraordinary, as more than $60 billion is spent in advertising geared to the rapidly growing college population.