Knowledge and Attitudes of High School Students about AIDS: A Turkish Perspective Sevim Savaser, R.N., Ph.D. Abstract This study was conducted with 705 high school students (360 ninth graders and 345 11th graders; 305 female, 400 male) for the purpose of determining their knowledge and attitudes about HIV/AIDS. Data were obtained using a self- completed questionnaire. The questionnaire was divided into three sections. Section A included questions about descriptive characteristics of the students. Section B included questions about HIV/AIDS knowledge. Section C included questions about students’ attitudes towards AIDS and their information sources. The percentage, correlation, and one-way analysis of variance were used for data analysis. Research findings showed moderate knowledge levels (59.15 ± 14.22 out of 100 points) in a sample group of 705 Turkish high school students on all AIDS-related questions. Students in private schools had higher scores than those in public schools; boys had higher scores than girls; 11th graders had higher scores than ninth graders, and the methods of transmission were better known than methods of nontransmis- sion. Scores increased in parallel with student age. Knowledge scores of students were also positively correlated with a higher level of parent education and the ease with which sexuality- related subjects were discussed at home. About half of the students believed that people with HIV/AIDS should be able to attend school and should not have to stop working. Most of the students were informed about HIV/AIDS by media. To prevent the illness, the most important role of the nurses is to focus on education and information for individuals, families, and com- munities. Key words: AIDS, high school students, knowledge, attitudes HIV infection and AIDS (HIV/AIDS) is one of the most important and controversial public health problems of the day. Since 1981, HIV/AIDS has gradually reached epidemic status, touching every society in the world to varying degrees. This problem is no respecter of country border, culture, race, language, color, sex, or age (Bozkaya, 1994; C¸ etin, 1993b). Worldwide epidemiolog- ical research has demonstrated that HIV is spread predominantly through sexual relationships and through maternal transmission to infants at birth and via the bloodstream. Those with sexually transmitted diseases are at greater risk of being infected with HIV/AIDS (Ustac¸elebi, 1995; Bozkaya, 1994; C¸ etin, 1993b; Esen, 1992; Go¨rak & Savaser, 1996; Walter & Vaughan, 1994). The number of adolescents and young adults infected with HIV is rapidly increasing worldwide (Walter & Vaughan, 1994). In 2001, approximately 6,000 young people aged 15 to 24 became infected with HIV every day: about five every minute (UNAIDS, 2001). Because of an eight- to 10-year latency period before active signs of infection occur, most young adults newly identified as HIV-infected can be assumed to have acquired the illness in adolescence. In the next 10 years, an explosion in the number of children and adolescents with HIV/AIDS can be expected in the world (Flynn, 1994). Developmental characteristics of young populations include a tendency toward risk-taking behavior and indifference to the import- ance of preventative measures. For these reasons, young people can be said to be at greater risk for the trans- mission of AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. BACKGROUND AIDS was first identified in Turkey in 1985. It has been diagnosed mostly in blood transfusion recipients, in intravenous drug users, in workers and students who Sevim Savaser is an Associate Professor, Istanbul University, Florence Nightingale College of Nursing. Address correspondence to Sevim Savaser, Doc ¸ . Dr. Istanbul Univer- sitesi Florence Nightingale Hemsirelik Yuksekokulu, 80270 Caglayan- Sisli/Istanbul, Turkey. E-mail: sevimsavaser@hotmail.com Public Health Nursing Vol. 20 No. 1, pp. 71–79 0737-1209/03/$15.00 Ó Blackwell Publishing, Inc. 71