Date of Award

1-1-2014

Language

English

Document Type

Master's Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

College/School/Department

Department of Sociology

Content Description

1 online resource (ii, 52 pages) : illustrations, color map.

Dissertation/Thesis Chair

Kate Strully

Committee Members

Nancy Denton, Samantha Friedman

Keywords

Condom Use, Gender, HIV/AIDS, India, Urbanization, Married women, Condom use, AIDS (Disease)

Subject Categories

Sociology

Abstract

Recent research on HIV/AIDS in India has not focused on married women, although married women have shown increasing rates of infection. This study examines how condom use among married women varies by regional and residential location, and further examines how the variation may be explained by a set of potential mediators. My theories used in this study are Urbanization, Information-Motivation-Behavioral Model, and Gender Theory to capture how society and location may not only provide women with the necessary education about HIV/AIDS prevention, but also motivate them to put that knowledge to use. Using the Demographic and Health Survey for India 2005-2006, I develop the beginnings of a mediating analysis to better understand how variables of education, gender roles, HIV/AIDS awareness, and health care access can vary by region, thus resulting in varying condom use throughout India. The sample includes 24,360 married women between the ages of 15-49. I develop four models which test the following: varying condom use by location, each individual mediator by location, each individual mediator by condom use, and finally varying condom use by location taking into account the mediators. My results show that education, intolerance for intimate partner violence, awareness of HIV/AIDS with methods to prevent transmission, and knowing a place to get tested for HIV all were significant mediators in helping to explain why condom use varies by both residential and regional location. I conclude with a discussion on how HIV/AIDS campaigns in India may be able to slow the progression of the disease by addressing challenges that married women may have when faced with the expectations of strict family-oriented roles versus the real risk of becoming HIV-positive.

Download

Included in

Sociology Commons

Share

COinS