From: Development of a 12-item short version of the HIV stigma scale
Subscale | Description of content excerpted from Berger et al.a | Interpretation of main aspects | Questions selected for the short version of the HIV Stigma Scale |
---|---|---|---|
Personalised stigma | ‘…Perceived consequences of other people knowing that the respondent has HIV, such as losing friends, feeling that people were avoiding him/her, and regrets for having told people’. | 1. Losing friends and fear of rejection. | 29. People I care about stopped calling after learning I have HIV |
36. I have lost friends by telling them I have HIV | |||
2. Feeling that people avoid me. | 28. Some people avoid touching me if they know I have HIV | ||
3. Regrets for having told people about my HIV status | All items regarding this aspect cross-loaded in analyses or had underfit | ||
Disclosure concerns | ‘…controlling information, keeping one’s HIV status a secret, or worrying that others who knew about respondent’s HIV status would tell’. | 1. Keeping my HIV status a secret | 4. Telling someone I have HIV is risky |
6. I work hard to keep my HIV a secret | |||
17. I am very careful who I tell that I have HIV | |||
2. Worrying that others will disclose my HIV status | All items regarding this aspect cross-loaded in the analyses or had underfit | ||
Concerns about public attitudes | ‘…what most people think about people with HIV or what most people with HIV can expect when others learn they have HIV … the consequences of people in general knowing about a person having HIV’. | 1. What most people think about people with HIV | 10. Most people believe a person who has HIV is dirty |
20. Most people are uncomfortable around someone with HIV | |||
2. Consequences of people in general knowing about a person having HIV | 9. People with HIV are treated like outcasts | ||
Negative self-image | ‘…feeling unclean, not as good as others or like a bad person because of HIV … feelings of shame and guilt’. | 1. Negative feelings, guilt, shame, feeling unclean | 2. I feel guilty because I have HIV |
2. Feeling like I am a bad person because of HIV | 7. I feel I’m not as good a person as others because I have HIV | ||
3. People’s attitudes about HIV make me feel worse about myself |