In J Sch Cogn Psychol DOI: 10.35248/2329-8901.19.7.215 Qualitative study on Perceived Social Support and Psychological Well-being of People living with HIV/AIDS Nimona Shaka School of psychology, College of Education and Behavioural Studies, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Oromia, Ethiopia Abstract People living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) report feelings of self-doubt, self-consciousness, and negative interpersonal interactions, and feelings of hopelessness and despair related to their illness. Understanding about the social support available and received by PLWHA is important as it impacts their psychological well being. In-depth interviews were carried out with PLWHA receiving treatment and support from a Charity organisation at Fitchewereda. Fitcheis in Oromia region, Ethiopia. Participant recruitment was terminated when saturation of themes was obtained in qualitative interviews, totaling 12 participants. Acceptance of HIV status was difficult. A majority chose to seclude themselves and not face discrimination and a similar number were thinking others are discriminating them because of their HIV status. So self-stigma was also affecting psychological wellbeing more than experience of stigma. Being a member of the charity organisation and getting support from that organisation as well as interacting with others receiving treatment there were of assistance in their feelings of belongingness, coping among others. Members received assistance to learn new skills to earn a living and this boosted their self-confidence. Support from the charity organisation was an enabling factor. Participants valued this support, though they had felt that family support could have been better. Keywords: HIV/AIDS, Psychological Well-being and Perceived Social Support. BACKGROUND In response to the HIV epidemic, the Ethiopian government in collaboration with development partners has developed a five-year national HIV and AIDS strategic plan (2015) that adhere to global directions (Federal HIV/AIDS prevention and control office, 2014). However, impact is slow to pick up in certain areas. The HIV testing coverage remains unchanged between 2011 and 2016. The percentage of respondents who know that using condoms consistently and limiting sexual intercourse to one uninfected partner with no other partners can reduce the risk of HIV has increased from 32% in 2000 to 49% in 2016 among women and from 58% to 69% among men; not a substantial increase where knowledge is concerned (EDHS, 2016). Discriminatory attitudes towards people living with HIV is an area of major concern.The 2016 Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey (EDHS) found that discriminatory attitudes are higher in women than in men. For instance, 48% of women and 35% of men thought that children living with HIV should not be allowed to attend school with children. 55% of women and 47% of men would not buy fresh vegetables from a shopkeeper who has HIV. Considerable differences in discriminatory attitudes were observed between urban and rural areas: 28% of women and 27% of men from urban areas compared with 73% women and 60% men from rural areas held discriminatory attitudes.People including family members still have negative attitude and discriminatory behavior against PLWHA, at least implicitly (Thanh, Moland&Fylkesnes, 2012).Despite advances in clinical science, those infected with HIV continue to experience high levels of discrimination and stigmatization in the communities where they live (Vanable, Carey, Blair, &Littlewood, 2006), amongst other health-related stressors and challenges (Strine, Chapman, Balluz, &Mokdad, 2008). Stigmatization or the expe- rience of discrimination to the extent that normal social life is disrupted, can have a profound impact on the lives of PLWHA, as the experience can affect their mental health (Wang, Li, Barnett, Zhao& Stanton 2012). The above data is indicative that people go for testing late and are often unaware of the treatment for HIV infection. The fear of HIV/ AIDS can lead to even family members being discriminating in behaviour and not providing the physical and emotional support that the sick person will need very badly. Stigma and discrimination of family, peers, friends and other stake holders will have impact on Correspondence to: Nimona Shaka, College of Education and Behavioural Studies, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Oromia, Ethiopia. Email: nimona.shaka@aau.edu.et Received: January18, 2021; Accepted: January 22, 2021; Published: May 20, 2021 Citation: Nimona Shaka (2021) Qualitative study on Perceived Social Support and Psychological Well-being of People living with HIV/ AIDS. In J Sch Cogn Psychol. DOI: 10.35248/2329-8901.19.7.215 Copyright: © 2021 Nimona Shaka, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribu- tion License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited International Journal of School and Cognitive Psychology