AIDS education intervention utilizing a person with AIDS: examination and clarification.

The utility of a person with AIDS (PWA) in conveying AIDS information to college students is assessed. Mode of transmission of HIV is proposed to serve as a moderating variable in students' receptivity to the AIDS information and perception of the source of AIDS information. Two-hundred-sixty undergraduate students received a standardized lecture by a confederate, posing as a PWA, who revealed HIV positive status through either heterosexual transmission, homosexual transmission, needle-sharing, or a blood transfusion. Control conditions received the lecture from a neutral presenter (no HIV status disclosure) or no contact. All the HIV conditions were superior to the Control condition in increasing knowledge about AIDS and AIDS prevention. Additionally, students rated the PWA more positively than the neutral presenter on a number of evaluative dimensions. Mode of transmission served a mediating effect, with the confederate viewed most favorably in the Heterosexual and Transfusion conditions, and less favorably in the i.v. Drug and Homosexual conditions. Implications for educational programs are discussed.