HIV/AIDS messages as a spur for conversation among young South Africans?

Uncovering Factors Influencing Interpersonal Health Communication

Talking to friends, family, or peers about health issues might, among other things, increase knowledge of social norms and feelings of self-efficacy in adopting a healthier lifestyle. We often see interpersonal health communication as an important mediating factor in the effects of health campaigns on health behavior. No research has been done so far, however, on factors that influence whether and how people talk about health issues without being exposed to a health campaign first. In this exploratory study, we interviewed 12 participants about their communication behavior concerning six different health themes, like smoking and exercising. The results suggest that at least four types of interpersonal health communication can be distinguished, each influenced by different factors, like conversational partner and objective of the conversation. Future research should take this diversity of interpersonal health communication into account, and focus on designing health campaigns that aim to trigger dialogue within target populations.

How peer conversations about HIV/AIDS media messages affect comprehension and beliefs of young South African women

Most existent research on the effects of interpersonal discussions about health campaign messages is based on surveys. In this study, we analysed actual conversations about an HIV/AIDS poster to find out possible effects. Young South African women in 59 dyads (n = 118) participated in conversations about a deliberately puzzling HIV and AIDS poster that cautioned the target group to be faithful to one sexual partner. We measured their comprehension of the poster and beliefs about the message, before and after the conversations. Overall, actual comprehension (AC) was low, and we observed a large discrepancy between actual and perceived comprehension. In general, conversations did not improve AC. It proved to be even more probable that a correct interpretation before a conversation turned into an incorrect interpretation than the other way around. However, having a well-informed conversation partner increased the chance of acquiring adequate subsequent comprehension. We found, in general, that conversations did not decrease undesirable beliefs. One important undesirable belief even became reinforced after the conversations. Conversations among peers might be valuable in health campaigns, but our study shows that intended positive effects do not automatically follow.