The Message Design Logics of Responses to HIV Disclosures

This article uses the theory of message design logics to investigate the relative sophistication of responses to disclosure of HIV status. In Study 1, 548 college students imagined a sibling revealing an HIV-positive diagnosis. Their responses to the HIV disclosures were coded as expressive (n= 174), conventional (n= 298), or rhetorical (n= 66). Type of message produced was associated with gender and HIV aversion. In Study 2, 459 individuals living with HIV rated response messages that were taken verbatim from Study 1. Expressive messages were rated lowest in quality, and rhetorical messages were rated highest. The discussion focuses on the utility of message design logics for understanding responses to HIV disclosures and the implications for message design logics

The medical, personal, and social causes of uncertainty in HIV illness

Uncertainty is an important part of the illness experience. Mishel elaborated a theory of uncertainty in acute illness and later expanded the framework to account for uncertainty in chronic illness. Researchers subsequently have investigated the causes and outcomes associated with the uncertainty in illness experience across a variety of medical conditions. The current study applies and extends Mishel\u27s model within the context of HIV illness-related uncertainty. In this qualitative study, focus group methods were used to examine the nature of illness uncertainty experienced by persons living with HIV or AIDS. Findings confirm Mishel\u27s contention that the causes of uncertainty extend beyond those of medical diagnosis, treatment, and recovery to personal and social aspects of daily life. Identified sources of uncertainty may have important mental health and quality of life implications