This Kaiser Public Opinion Spotlight focuses on the public's views about HIV-related discrimination and stigma, as well as questions that illustrate the public's attitudes towards individuals who are infected with HIV.
Overall, a large share of the public appears to be aware of potential stigma resulting from one's HIV status, with roughly half saying that there is a lot of discrimination against people with AIDS in the United States. While public attitudes towards people with HIV/AIDS have become considerably less negative since the beginning of the epidemic, a substantial minority of the public still holds views that might contribute to people with HIV being stigmatized in this country.
Many people are at least somewhat concerned about the possibility that they will become infected with HIV, and in 2006, significant minorities of the public still incorrectly think HIV might be transmitted through various forms of casual contact, such as kissing (37%), sharing a drinking glass (22%), and touching a toilet seat (16%). These lingering misconceptions are potentially a contributing factor to prejudice against HIV-positive individuals, since people who believe that HIV can be transmitted in these ways are much more likely to express discomfort about working with someone who has AIDS.
Fear of being stigmatized by one's HIV status (or perceived HIV status) also appears to have at least some relationship to people's decisions about whether or not to get tested for HIV. About one in five say that if they were to be tested for HIV, people they know would think less of them.
For more information about public opinion on HIV/AIDS, see:
Public Opinion on the Global HIV/AIDS Epidemic
http://www.kff.org/spotlight/hivglobal/index.cfm
Public Opinion on the HIV/AIDS Epidemic in the United States
http://www.kff.org/spotlight/hivus/index.cfm
The Public's Experiences with and Attitudes about HIV Testing
http://www.kff.org/spotlight/hivtest/index.cfm
The Public's Knowledge and Perceptions About HIV/AIDS
http://www.kff.org/spotlight/hiv/index.cfm
