Risk Perceptions of People Living with HIV/AIDS

Abstract

Little as known about how people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWH/A) assess their vulnerability to non-HIVrelated risk factors, and how this judgement is affected by perceived similarity with others. This study indicates not only that PLWH/A are optimistically biased in their risk pereceptions, but also that they do not use others' HIV status to assess similarity. Perceived similarity with others, however, affects risk judgements: greater the perceived similarity with others, greater the tendency to judge others' vulnerability relative to one's own. Findings point to the importance of considering similarity as a key variable in understanding how risk assessments are made by persons with chronic health conditions.

Keywords

anchoring effects optimistic bias people living with HIV perceived risk similarity susceptibility

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Aiken, L.S. , & West, S.G. (1991). Multiple regression: Testing and interpreting interactions. Los Angeles, CA: SAGE.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDCP). (2005 ). Living with HIV/AIDS. http://www.cdc.gov}/hiv/pubs/brochure/livingwithhiv.htm (accessed 15 September 2006).

Cooperman, N.A. , & Simoni, J.M. (2005). Suicidal ideation and attempted suicide among women living with HIV/AIDS. Journal of Behavioral Medicine , 28(2), 149-156.

Davis, H.L. , Hoch, S.J. , & Ragsdale, E.K. (1986). An anchoring and adjustment model of spousal predictions. Journal of Consumer Research , 13(1), 25-37.

Gielen, A.C. , McDonnell, K.A. , O'Campo, P.J. , & Burke, J.G. (2005). Suicide risk and mental health indicators: Do they differ by abuse and HIV status? Women's Health Issues , 15(2), 89-95.

Heckman, T.G. , Miller, J. , Kochman, A. , Kalichman, S.C. , Carlson, B. , & Silverthorn, M. (2002). Thoughts of suicide among HIV-infected rural persons enrolled in a telephone-delivered mental health intervention. Annals of Behavioral Medicine, 24(2), 141-148.

Klar, Y. , & Giladi, E.E. (1999). Are most people happier than their peers, or are they just happy? Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin , 25(5), 585-594.

Kruger, J. (1999). Lake Wobegon be gone! The `belowaverage effect' and the egocentric nature of comparative ability judgments. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 77(2), 221-232.

Michigan Department of Community Health. ( 2006). 2006 Epidemiological profile of HIV/AIDS in Michigan [Powerpoint Slides]. www.michigan.gov/documents/hispanic_analysisapr0105_124187_7.pdf (accessed 14 July 2008).

10.

Rimal, R.N. , & Morrison, D. (2006). A uniqueness to personal threat (UPT) hypothesis: How similarity affects perceptions of susceptibility and severity in risk assessment. Health Communication, 20(3), 209-219.

11.

Rimal, R.N. , & Real, K. (2005). How behaviors are influenced by perceived norms: A test of the theory of normative social behavior. Communication Research, 32(3), 389-414.

12.

Taylor, S.E. , Kemeny, M.E. , Aspinwall, L.G. , Schneider, S.G. , Rodriguez, R. , & Herbert, M. (1992). Optimism, coping, psychological distress, and high-risk sexual behavior among men at risk for Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS). Journal of Personality and Social Psychology , 63(3), 460-473.

13.

Until There's a Cure Foundation. (2007). Vital statistics, October. http://www.until.org/statistics.shtml?gclid=CLvDy-jPwJQCFSEbagod9HgLUA (accessed 14 July 2008).

14.

Weinstein, N.D. (1980). Unrealistic optimism about future life events . Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 39(5), 806-820.

15.

Weinstein, N.D. (1984). Why it won't happen to me: Perceptions of risk factors and susceptibility. Health Psychology, 3(5), 431-457.

16.

Witte, K. (1992). Putting the fear back into fear appeals: The extended parallel process model. Communication Monographs, 59(December), 329-349.