Int Conf AIDS 1993 Jun 6-11; 9:128 (abstract no. WS-D25-4) Jenkins C; PNG Institute of Medical Research, Goroka, Papua New Guinea.
In Papua New Guinea, as elsewhere, sexual behavior is patterned by age, gender and culture. The material presented is drawn from a national ethnographic study covering 40 language groups in communities selected to represent rural and peri-urban conditions. The data consist of 423 sexual life histories and 35 focus groups collected by trained members of the communities. Findings indicate that urban experience, while frequently associated with high risk sexual behavior, is not a sound predictor of the risk of acquiring HIV. Other factors are very important, such as the acceptability of group sex (one woman to many men), the degree of westernization of village mores, current marriage patterns, and traditional beliefs concerning the consequences of various sex acts as well as their frequency. Rapid social change, the development of cash economy coupled with the introduction of gonorrhea and syphilis within the past century contribute to a potentially explosive situation for the spread of HIV. The potential for condom use, however, appears high and future prevention activities may have a substantial impact.
Keywords: AEGIS, Coitus, Sex, Sex Behavior, HIV Infections, Societies, Safe Sex, HIV, Gonorrhea, HIV-1, Sex Factors, Papua New Guinea, Human, Male, Female, ICA9 930606
WSD254
