AIDS education for gay men: Towards a more cognitive approach

An approach to AIDS education is presented that focuses on the thinking processes which accompany gay men's decisions to engage in high-risk sex. It is proposed that: (1) at the time they are deciding to have high-risk sex, gay men generally engage in an 'internal dialogue' that justi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:AIDS care 2000-06, Vol.12 (3), p.267-272
Main Author: Gold, R. S.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome
Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome
Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome - prevention & control
Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome - psychology
AIDS
AIDS/HIV
Cognition
Cognition & reasoning
Cognitive aspects
Condoms
Gays & lesbians
Health Education
Health Education - methods
Homosexuality
Homosexuality, Male - psychology
Homosexuals
Human immunodeficiency virus
Humans
Male
Males
Melbourne, Australia
Men
Risk
Risk factors
Risk-Taking
Sex education
Sexual Behavior
Sexual Behavior - psychology
Sexual Intercourse
Sydney, Australia
Thinking
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Summary:An approach to AIDS education is presented that focuses on the thinking processes which accompany gay men's decisions to engage in high-risk sex. It is proposed that: (1) at the time they are deciding to have high-risk sex, gay men generally engage in an 'internal dialogue' that justifies this decision to themselves; (2) the AIDS-related thinking underpinning such selfjustifications can differ appreciably from the AIDS-related thinking that takes place outside the sexual context; and (3) AIDS education can profitably exploit this difference between 'heat of the moment' and 'cold light of day' thinking. Evidence supporting these proposals is drawn from studies in which gay men who had engaged in unprotected anal intercourse recalled the occasion concerned in detail, including any self-justifications they had used; and from controlled intervention studies, in which gay men who had engaged in unprotected anal intercourse were confronted with the thinking they had employed in the heat of the moment.
ISSN:0954-0121
1360-0451
DOI:10.1080/09540120050042909