HIV/AIDS knowledge and information sources among deaf and hearing college students

A sample of 34 deaf undergraduate college students at Gallaudet University and 46 hearing undergraduate college students at the University of Maryland Baltimore County completed a questionnaire that asked about their knowledge and sources of information concerning the human immunodeficiency virus and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS). The deaf students had significantly lower scores on an "HIV/AIDS Knowledge Index" than the hearing students. This difference could not be explained by the deaf students' gender, class standing, family structure, or father's or mother's education level. The deaf students obtained more of their information about HIV/AIDS from family and friends than the hearing students, who relied to a greater extent on teachers, television, and reading material. The interpersonal sources used by the deaf students are more prone to factual errors than formal sources. Deaf students need methods of educating themselves about HIV/AIDS that are more accurate and that recognize the importance of sources as well as the content of information.