Behavior Change Theory to HIV Prevention

描述：本提案涉及的态度和行为改变领域的最新理论发展的应用，以设计艾滋病毒预防干预措施，以减少性风险行为。PI和她的团队将开发四个项目。项目1（目前通过R01资助）包括一个关于选择性接触艾滋病毒预防材料和参与艾滋病毒预防咨询干预的现场实验。它的结果将使我们能够估计哪些人可能会接触到预防方案，并以吸引最不情愿的观众的方式设计这些方案。项目2将包括为随机对照试验收集试点数据，以研究干预者的专业知识对外行的影响，以及艾滋病毒预防干预的促进者和接受者之间的人口统计学相似性，主要是在非洲裔美国人中。该项目将提供有关最佳专家选择的宝贵数据，并为艾滋病毒预防干预措施对减少性别和种族多样化人群的性风险行为产生最大影响做好准备。Project 3将通过一系列实验室预备实验和现场试点研究，研究行动目标（性行为的思考、禁欲的意图）对这一领域态度和行为的形成和改变的影响。因此，项目3将为调查禁欲和性活动意图在多大程度上可以提高艾滋病预防干预措施的有效性提供基础，这些干预措施适用于对降低风险的做法持良好态度和不良态度的受众。项目4将包括关于干预措施的影响的试点实验，这些干预措施与接受者可能的后续行为相冲突，并且需要改进它们以预测不遵守行为。这项试点研究对于重复我们早期的发现至关重要，即作为预防性干预的一部分，提出不切实际的要求会导致不服从，并最终导致接受者推断他们对降低风险的行为持消极态度。职业发展计划侧重于旨在促进候选人在该领域的高级地位和领导地位的活动，包括参加会议，组织会议，与资深科学家合作，以及培训学生，博士后助理和初级教师，以及在社区传播研究。

DESCRIPTION: This proposal concerns the application of recent theoretical developments in the area of attitude and behavior change to the design of HIV-prevention interventions to reduce sexual risk behavior. Four projects will be developed by the PI and her team. Project 1 (currently funded through an R01) comprises a field experiment concerning selective exposure to HIV-prevention materials and participation in HlV-prevention counseling interventions. Its results will allow us to estimate which people are likely to come into contact with preventive programs and to design these programs in ways that attract the most reluctant audiences. Project 2 will include the collection of pilot data for a randomized control trial to study the influence of the interventionist's expertise vs. laity, as well as the demographic similarity between the facilitators and recipients of HIV-prevention intervention, primarily among African-Americans. This project will yield invaluable data concerning the best selection of experts and lays for maximal impact of HIV-prevention interventions on the reduction of sexual risk behavior for gender- and ethnicity-diverse populations. Project 3 will study the influence of action goals (thinking about having sex, intentions to be abstinent) on the formation and change of attitudes and behaviors in this domain through a series of preparatory laboratory experiments, and a pilot field study. Thus, Project 3 will provide the basis for investigating the degree to which sexual abstinence and sexual activity intentions may increase the effectiveness of HIV-prevention interventions for audiences with well- vs. ill-formed attitudes about risk reduction practices. Project 4 will comprise pilot experiments on the influence of interventions that conflict with the likely subsequent behavior of recipients and the need to refine them anticipating noncompliance behavior. This pilot research is essential to replicate our earlier findings that making unrealistic requests as part of a preventive intervention elicits noncompliance and ultimately leads to recipients' inferences that they have a negative attitude about risk reduction behaviors. The career development plan focuses on activities designed to advance the candidate's progress toward senior status and leadership in the field, including conference attendance, conference organization, collaboration with senior scientists, as well as training of students, postdoctoral associates, and junior faculty, and dissemination of research in the community.