Two cultures, two levels of AIDS risk
Wang, M.S.; Gao, M.Y.; Zhao, J.
Bulletin of the World Health Organization 77(3): 278-280
1999
ISSN/ISBN: 0042-9686 PMID: 10212522 Document Number: 281424
By early 1997, more than 150,000 HIV/AIDS cases had occurred in China, and it is estimated that by 2000, more than 1 million people in China will be infected with HIV if the present trend of infection continues. During 1987-90, the highest incidence of cases in the country, 491/year, was found among the self-employed population. A survey was conducted in 1996 to find out why that population group was at such high risk and what could be done to improve preventive and educational measures. Following the legalization of self-employment in 1978, the comparatively high incomes of self-employed workers allowed them to escape the socioeconomic controls imposed upon the rest of the population and adopt unconventional sexual behavior, resulting in their increased risk of contracting HIV. The survey found that self-employed people were more likely to engage in unprotected sex with casual partners, and that because of their business contacts, they tended to have sexual contacts in various parts of the country. Self-employed people who have comparatively frequent contact with members of low socioeconomic groups are more likely to receive unreliable information on AIDS and to practice unsafe sex than are those who socialize in more affluent circles. While self-employed people of high socioeconomic status have more sex partners than do others, they are better informed about safe sex and use condoms more often. Age, marital status, and educational level play no significant role in these matters. The attitudes, beliefs, and sexual behavior of the self-employed vary according to where they live and work. Special education and prevention programs should be deployed in the various social networks and places where the self-employed congregate.