Depressive symptoms, HIV disclosure, and HIV-related stigma among migrant workers living with HIV in Chiang Mai, Thailand

Associations Between Internalized and Anticipated HIV Stigma and Depression Symptoms Among People Living with HIV in China: A four-wave Longitudinal Model

Previous research has documented that HIV-related stigma (e.g., internalized and anticipated stigma) is detrimental to the mental health of people living with HIV (PLWH). However, longitudinal data on the bidirectional relationship between HIV-related stigma and depression symptoms are limited. The purpose of this study was to examine the bidirectional association among internalized and anticipated HIV stigma and depression symptoms among Chinese PLWH. A four-wave longitudinal design (6 months intervals) was employed among 1,111 Chinese PLWH (Mage = 38.58, SD = 9.16, age range: 18-60 years; 64.1% men). The bidirectional model was examined using a random-intercept cross-lagged panel model (RI-CLPM), which evaluated the within- and between-person effects of study variables. At the within-person level, results indicated that depression symptoms at T2 mediated the linkage between internalized HIV stigma at T1 and anticipated HIV stigma at T3, and that anticipated HIV stigma at both T2 and T3 mediated the relationship between depression symptoms at the previous time point and internalized HIV stigma at the subsequent time point. Furthermore, a bidirectional association was found between anticipated HIV stigma and depression symptoms across four waves. At the between-person level, internalized and anticipated HIV stigma were significantly associated with depression symptoms. This study highlights the complex interplay between different forms of HIV-related stigma and mental health problems among PLWH and underscores the importance of considering the bidirectional relationship between the development of psychopathology and stigmatization process in clinical practice.

Development and Validation of a New Comprehensive Assessment Scale of HIV-Related Psychological Distress in China: A Methodological Study

ABSTRACT

Instruments evaluating HIV-related psychological distress (HRPD) in people living with HIV may lack sensitivity to capture patients' psychological burden. We developed a comprehensive scale measuring HRPD and evaluated its psychometric properties. A mixed-method study was conducted from July 2021 to April 2022; it involved a literature review, semistructured interviews (n = 15), three rounds of panel discussions, two rounds of Delphi studies (n = 20), a pilot test (n = 20) to generate new scale items, and a cross-sectional survey (n = 659) to evaluate the psychometric properties of the HIV-related psychological distress scale. The scale contains 22 items across 4 subscales (i.e., disease-related distress, treatment adherence distress, identity distress, and disclosure distress). The confirmatory factor analysis revealed high goodness of fit (χ2/df = 2.412, comparative fit index = 0.916, incremental fit index = 0.917, and Tucker‒Lewis index = 0.902), showing that the HIV-related psychological distress scale is a reliable (Cronbach's α = 0.871 overall) and valid scale for evaluating HRPD in China and can be used to dynamically evaluate and monitor HRPD levels during patient follow-up.

The Thai Internalized HIV-related Stigma Scale

Introduction

Internalized stigma among people living with HIV has been linked to a range of negative consequences. The current study describes the development and validation of a contextually appropriate internalized HIV-related Stigma Scale for people living with HIV in Thailand.

Methods

The study was carried out in two stages from 2018 to 2019: developing items based on the findings of focus group discussions and pilot testing the original list of items and validating the instrument. In the cross-sectional survey stage, a sample of 400 people living with HIV was used to validate the test items in accordance with their psychometric characteristics.

Results

The study’s outcome was the 22-item Thai Internalized HIV-related Stigma Scale (Thai-IHSS). The exploratory factor analysis showed that the Thai-IHSS consisted of four components: negative thoughts toward self (5 items), anticipated negative thoughts (7 items), effects of negative thought toward self (6 items), and effects of negative thoughts toward family and access to healthcare services (4 items).

Discussion

The Thai-IHSS had acceptable concurrent, convergent, and congruent validity according to the findings. Additionally, the 8-item Thai-IHSS brief, which included two items for each component, was detailed. The Thai-IHSS is valid and reliable for use in Thailand and other countries with comparable sociocultural environments.

Profiles of depressive symptoms and influential factors among people living with HIV in China

BACKGROUND

Depressive symptoms are highly prevalent among people living with HIV (PLWH). We leveraged Latent Profile Analysis (LPA) to identify profiles of depressive symptoms among PLWHs. We also investigated differences in psychological factors of interest, demographic characteristics, and HIV-related factors across patients' profiles.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study was conducted at one hospital and two designated prison facilities in Hunan province, China. A total sample of 533 PLWHs (320 recruited from the hospital, 213 recruited from prisons) completed the survey. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9). Family function, resilience, childhood trauma, demographic characteristics, and HIV-related factors were also evaluated. We conducted LPA and multinomial logistic regression analyses to: 1) identify distinct profiles for depressive symptoms; 2) identify demographic characteristics, and HIV-related, and psychological factors predicting PLWHs' likelihood to express a specific profile.

RESULTS

We identified three distinct profiles of depressive symptoms among PLWHs: severe symptoms (11.8%), moderate symptoms (40.5%), and low/no symptoms (47.7%). Moderate/ severe family dysfunction, low resilience, experiencing emotional abuse and neglect were more likely to fall in the "severe symptoms" rather than the "low/no symptoms" profile. In addition, severe family dysfunction, low resilience, and experiencing emotional neglect indicated a higher likelihood of being classified in the "moderate symptoms" profile, compared to the "low/no symptoms" profile.

CONCLUSION

Identifying profiles of depressive symptoms among PLWHs using the PHQ-9 items allows for understanding of the distinct paths of development of depressive symptoms and for developing tailored prevention and intervention programs for PLWHs.