Mixing it Up: Integrating Men and Women Living with HIV/AIDS in Prevention Groups

The current study was conducted to examine the impact of mixing genders in HIV prevention intervention groups targeted toward HIV positive men and women.

Men (N=310) and women (N=126) participated in a randomized clinical trial testing a behavioral risk reduction/ medication adherence intervention versus a general health control condition administered to small mixed gender groups. Gender composition of groups was examined in relation to participant group attendance and group satisfaction measures through correlations and logistic regression.

Significant regression models were found for men in the risk reduction condition and for women in the general health condition, however, regression models were not significant for women in the risk reduction condition and men in the general health condition.

The findings indicate that mixing genders in risk reduction interventions for men and women living with HIV/AIDS has no negative impact on women's group satisfaction and may positively impact men's group satisfaction. This calls into question the assumption that gender sensitive material will always make individuals uncomfortable within mixed gender groups.

In practice, mixed gender intervention groups can be a helpful option for delivering programs to diverse populations especially when resources are limited within community-based services providers and AIDS service organizations.

Although more thorough investigation is needed about the consequences and possible benefits of mixing genders within HIV prevention intervention groups, this study supports the idea that mixing genders may be a viable option, in practice, without sacrificing the integrity of the intervention.