Youths Living with HIV

Self-Evident Truths

In this enlightening book, you’ll explore the life struggles and adaptations leading up to and following HIV infection in young Americans. The cases presented in Youths Living with HIV envisage a variety of experiences of youths living with HIV and AIDS, including individuals of different races, of each gender, and of different sexual preferences. This discussion of the private “troubles” and experiences of youths helps you understand and identify dependent and larger public issues surrounding HIV infection and AIDS, and demonstrates the need for comprehensive and targeted intervention and preventive measures.

This book is the result of the first federally funded multi-site study to research, develop, and provide HIV education and prevention specifically to young Americans. Detailed narrative descriptions were collected by ethnographers of the Joven Project, which started in October 1992, and explored and documented the lives of youths living with HIV and AIDS over a two-year period. This ethnographic exploratory study was one component of a larger National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) supported Secondary AIDS Education and Prevention Program.

Youths Living with HIV reconstructs the past and present struggles that young people living with HIV and AIDS face(d), employing qualitative field interviews. Larger and interrelated developmental, social, cultural, and political factors are also illustrated and discussed. As you read through the chapters, you’ll gain insight into:

• youth development--coming of age, sexual development, and risk-taking behaviors

• gay development and activity--coming out, establishing relationships, and power-imbalanced/cross-generational relationships

• self-harmful behaviors--drug use, sex, and poverty

• notification and reaction to infection

• impression management and disclosure of infection status

• adaptation to HIV status and necessary life changes

• sexual activity and relationships after infection

• social worlds and support networks/pathological or destructive networks

• availability and success of existing AIDS-related services

• future orientation and life expectations

  Whether you’re a counselor, teacher, policymaker, physician, mental health professional, social worker, or advocate who specializes in or focus on youth development, gay youths, field methodology (qualitative research), public health, women’s health, drug use, sex work, and/or AIDS, you will find Youths Living with HIV essential to understanding and helping this affected population.