Children's attitudes toward people with AIDS in Puerto Rico: exploring stigma through drawings and stories

AIDS stigma refers to prejudice and discrimination directed at people or groups perceived to have HIV/AIDS (Herek, 1999). Although AIDS stigma has been found in adolescent and adult populations, few researchers have explored it among children. Misconceptions about people with AIDS (PWA) might lead to negative attitudes toward PWA and obstruct HIV prevention efforts. The authors assessed 110 Puerto Rican children's attitudes toward PWA using drawings (n=65) and stories (n=45). Although participants held stigmatizing attitudes toward PWA across both methods, the approaches captured different beliefs and attitudes. Drawings depicted PWA as physically deteriorated and performing socially condemned behaviors, whereas stories describing PWA highlighted children's fear of contagion and death. Stigma toward PWA was more pronounced than toward other illnesses (e.g., cancer). The study highlights the importance of assessing children's attitudes through creative data collection procedures.