NCJ Number
128178
Journal
Communication Research Volume: 17 Issue: 6 Dated: special issue (December 1990) Pages: 743-758
Date Published
1990
Length
16 pages
Annotation
Byrne's model of emotional reactions to sexual stimuli and Herek's conceptualization of attitudes toward gay men and lesbians provided a framework for assessing the effects of such attitudes on adolescent learning about AIDS and HIV transmission.
Abstract
The study design involved a modified pretest/post-test control group procedure. Both control and experimental groups completed the pretest and the delayed post-test. Following an educational intervention, the experimental group also completed an immediate post-test containing only the knowledge items. Undergraduate students enrolled in introductory communication courses at a large midwestern university volunteered to participate in the study. Several hypotheses were tested concerning the effectiveness of the educational presentation and the influence of extreme attitudes toward gay men and lesbians to evaluate the learning and retention of information. Results demonstrated that the educational presentation produced significant increases in knowledge about AIDS and HIV transmission and that there was good retention of information. Students with extremely positive attitudes toward gay men and lesbians learned more about AIDS than students with extremely negative attitudes. Findings suggest that the conditioning of antigay attitudes toward the AIDS epidemic has an important influence on the extent to which students learn information about psychosoical aspects of AIDS. 17 references (Author abstract modified)