HIV-Related Misconceptions and Stigma in Vietnam: Levels and Determinants

Lung Vu, Tulane University

Stigma is one of the biggest obstacles in HIV prevention and control in Vietnam. Many people do not seek HIV test because they fear of a positive test result and a possible resulting stigmatization. Fear of being stigmatized also discourages test result disclosure, which may in turn negatively affect HIV transmission prevention.. Given the data from Vietnam 2005 Population and AIDS Indicator Survey, with a nationally representative sample of men and women aged 15-49, this paper examines levels and determinants of HIV-related misconception and stigma. Preliminary analysis shows that significant levels of misconceptions and stigma exist. Less than half of respondents could reject all three misconceptions. A similar proportion has stigmatizing attitude. Multivariate analysis shows that misconceptions are significantly associated with stigma after controlling for socio-demographic characteristics. Respondents who are younger, male, urban residents, better educated, from wealthier households, and have tested for HIV are less likely to stigmatize HIV-infected people.