Social Support and Response to AIDS and SARS
Author Information
Author(s): Nandi Arijit, Tracy Melissa, Aiello Allison, Des Jarlais Don C., Galea Sandro
Primary Institution: Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Hypothesis
Is social support associated with knowledge of, worry about, and attitudes towards AIDS and SARS?
Conclusion
Higher levels of social support are linked to greater knowledge of AIDS and lower levels of stigma towards SARS.
Supporting Evidence
- Social support was categorized as low, medium, or high based on tertiles of support reported in the sample.
- Lower levels of social support were associated with more stigmatizing attitudes toward SARS.
- Participants with high social support were less likely to be poorly informed about AIDS.
Takeaway
Having friends and family to support you can help you know more about diseases like AIDS and make you less worried about them.
Methodology
Data was collected through a random digit dial telephone survey and follow-up interviews in the New York City metropolitan area.
Potential Biases
Potential residual confounding due to treating covariates as time-fixed.
Limitations
The study's cross-sectional design makes it difficult to establish causality between social support and responses to EIDs.
Participant Demographics
Participants were 45.4% male, 54.1% white, 18.5% black, and 19.8% Hispanic, with a range of educational and income levels.
Statistical Information
P-Value
0.004
Statistical Significance
p<0.05
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
Want to read the original?
Access the complete publication on the publisher's website