Strengthening HIV Knowledge and Awareness among Undergraduate Students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities

Authors

Ashley Murray, Centers for Disease Control and PreventionFollow
Monica J. Huang, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Felicia Hardnett, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Madeline Y. Sutton, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Keywords

HIV; AIDS; African Americans; college students; HBCUs

Disciplines

Public Health

Abstract

Objective: We describe baseline HIV knowledge among students at historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) to inform and strengthen HIV education efforts at HBCUs.

Methods: We surveyed 1,230 African American HBCU students from 24 HBCUs; 1,051 responses (85.4 %) were analyzable.

Results: Although general HIV knowledge was high among respondents (95% of students correctly responded that having sex without a condom constituted unsafe sex), knowledge deficits were noted (only 25% of students reported that multiple sex partners is a form of unsafe sex, while 25% of students reported that withdrawal of the penis before ejaculation reduced HIV risk).

Conclusions: Misperceptions about HIV have implications for unintended sexual transmission of HIV. As African American young adults are disproportionately affected by HIV, strengthening HIV prevention efforts at HBCUs may include correcting misperceptions to reduce sexual risk and decrease HIV-related health disparities among young people.

Recommended Citation

Murray, Ashley; Huang, Monica J.; Hardnett, Felicia; and Sutton, Madeline Y. (2014) "Strengthening HIV Knowledge and Awareness among Undergraduate Students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities," Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice: Vol. 7: Iss. 4, Article 4.
Available at: https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/jhdrp/vol7/iss4/4