NCJ Number
139441
Journal
International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology Volume: 36 Issue: 3 Dated: (Fall 1992) Pages: 231-245
Date Published
1992
Length
15 pages
Annotation
To determine whether female prostitutes are more knowledgeable about AIDS than female nonprostitute arrestees, a comparison was made of their scores on a standard AIDS knowledge test.
Abstract
The 100 subjects were arrestees detained at the Hillsborough County, Florida, Work Release Center. Involvement in prostitution was measured in two ways. First, each respondent was asked to report the total number of arrests for prostitution during the past year. Second, prostitution involvement was measured in terms of the number of times each woman reported she had engaged in prostitution during the past year. The extent to which condoms were used by prostitutes and nonprostitutes was also assessed. Results indicated that self-reported frequency of prostitution was significantly and positively related to knowledge about AIDS. Only 13 nonprostitutes reported having sex with more than one partner in the 6 months prior to their interview. Of these, four said they sometimes used condoms, and two stated they always used condoms. In contrast, 45 prostitutes reported having more than one partner in the last 6 months; 53 percent reported sometimes using condoms, and 44 percent always used condoms. More prostitutes than nonprostitutes reported having sexually-transmitted diseases. In addition, more prostitutes than nonprostitutes received AIDS information from AIDS testing facilities. Nonetheless, because AIDS knowledge was roughly comparable across the entire study sample, it is suggested that educational intervention efforts are equally effective for prostitutes and female arrestees. 21 references and 7 tables