John B. Jemmott, III, Ph.D., and colleagues work on HIV intervention efforts in South Africa published in the Annals of Behavioral Medicine.
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
John B. Jemmott, III, Ph.D.The article “Moderation and Mediation of an Effective HIV Risk-Reduction Intervention for South African Adolescents” published in the
Annals of Behavioral Medicine looks at social cognitive variables and their ability to meditate the efficacy of a sexual risk-reduction intervention among South African adolescents.
The article was the collaborative efforts of
John B. Jemmott, III, Ph.D., the Kenneth B. Clark Professor of Communication and Psychiatry, Ann O’Leary, Ph.D. (lead author), Centers for Disease Control;
Loretta Sweet Jemmott, Ph.D., FAAN, RN, Director of the Center for Health Disparities Research, Penn Nursing; Scarlett Bellamy, PH.D., Zolani Ngwane, Ph.D., Larry Icard, Ph.D., and Lynette Gueits, MHS.
About the research
Background: “Let Us Protect Our Future” is a sexual risk reduction intervention for sixth-grade adolescents in South Africa. Tested in a cluster-randomized controlled trial, the intervention significantly reduced self-reported intercourse and unprotected intercourse during a 12-month follow-up period.
Purpose: The present analyses were conducted to identify moderators of the intervention’s efficacy as well as, which theory-based variables mediated the intervention’s effects.
Methods: Intervention efficacy over the 3-, 6-, and 12-month follow-up was tested using generalized estimating equation models.
Results: Living with their father in the home, parental strictness, and religiosity moderated the efficacy of the intervention in reducing unprotected intercourse. Self-efficacy to avoid risky situations and expected parental disapproval of their having intercourse, derived from Social Cognitive Theory, significantly mediated the intervention’s effect on abstinence.
The research was cited in an
invited commentary by Trevor A. Hart, Ph.D. Ryerson University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.