HIV/AIDS Stigma Talk with James Kiwanuka-Tondo

James Kiwanuka-Tondo, associate professor in the NC State Department of Communication, will give a talk on about HIV/AIDS stigma as part of the Mary Junck Research Colloquium Series

HIV/AIDS Stigma: Discussions from Black Female College Students on the role of religious organizations and health institutions in promoting dialogue and dissipating shame

September 19, 2014 from 3-4 p.m.
Freedom Forum Conference Center
3rd Floor Carroll Hall, UNC-CH Campus

While a lot of research has been done on traditionally thought of high-risk demographics, such as drug users and sex workers, little is known about HIV/AIDS-related stigma and its impact on the black female college population. HIV/AIDS-related stigma is prevalent in society and may prevent individuals from engaging in health information seeking regarding prevention, testing, and care. Our findings indicate that study participants perceived family, religious organizations and health care institutions as significantly impacting the promotion or dissipation of HIV/AIDS stigma. Awareness and understanding of students’ opinions and perceptions about stigma can assist health care personnel and religious leaders in developing prevention programs and services for individuals and their families within this particular group.

Dr. James Kiwanuka-Tondo is an Associate Professor and Coordinator of the Public Relations curriculum in the Department of Communication at North Carolina State University. He is currently a Park Faculty Scholar for the Park Scholars Class of 2016. His main area of research is health communication campaigns with particular emphasis on HIV/AIDS. His major contribution has been the development of the first ever quantitative model of relationships between organizational factors, campaign planning, and campaign execution variables. His work on HIV/AIDS has been published in a number of journals. He has been a principal investigator on several research grants and is currently Co-PI on a research project funded by a larger grant from the National Science Foundation with a purpose of developing culturally sensitive HIV/AIDS prevention messages for Black College Female students.