Towards a Strategy for Communicating HIV/AIDS Information for Attitudinal & Behavioural Change Among Rural Maragoli Women.

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to identify and describe the attitudes, practices and level of awareness in relation to HIV/AIDS and to explore traditional meth- ods of communication of the rural Maragoli women; and to determine the relation- ship between the level of awareness of HIV/AIDS and the involvement of rura Maragoli women in practices associated with the spread of HIV-AIDS. The study used questionnaires and interviews to achieve its objectives. About 300 questionnaires were administered using research assistants who were local primary school teachers. The research assistants collected opinions from 30 women from the local market center. The questionnaires were coded, keyed int the computer and analyzed with the help of a computer statistics bureau. Also, five interviews were conducted among five elderly Maragoli women whe were purposively selected. The women were to be conversant with the traditional methods of communicating sex-related information among Maragoli women. The interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed for analysis. The following were some of the key findings of the study. The level of awareness is about 70% on the average. The rural Maragoli women, at age below 35 years have a negative attitude towards cultural practices such as tattooing, wife inherit- ance and herbal medicine. However, as age increases the attitude changes, thus rural Maragoli women became increasingly inclined to accommodate these prac- tices. They do not advocate for the involvement of these practices even though they recognize that the practices are common in the area. The women recognize that the disease is a major problem in the area. However, most are undecided or how their HIV status would change their behavior. Most of the women preferred an interpersonal approach, as a channel of communication, in which people are put in age sets in barazas for discussion of HIV-AID related issues. The findings of the study lead to the conclusion that to make a strategy for communicating HIV-AIDS information for attitudinal and behavioral change among rural Maragoli women, one will have to incorporate a mixture of cultura and modern methods of communication. Also, one will have to consider the issu of age sets when preparing the strategy. An interpersonal approach strategy may be a way of bringing about attitudinal and behavioral change among rural Maragol women in a bid to curb the spread of HIV-AIDS disease.