Cervical cancer screening and human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination are critical for those immunocompromised due to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Health education programs, including text messaging, can effectively improve knowledge of cervical cancer and recommended screening. This paper describes the data-driven development of a 4-week…

Objective: To conduct a pilot test of a brief, self-guided, home-based program designed to improve male condom use attitudes and behaviors among young women. Participants: Women aged 18-24 years from a large Midwestern University reporting having had penile-vaginal sex with two or more partners in the past 3 months. Sixty-seven enrolled; 91.0%…

Adolescent girls are at substantial risk of sexually transmitted diseases including HIV. To reduce these risks, we developed Health Education And Relationship Training (HEART), a web-based intervention focused on developing sexual assertiveness skills and enhancing sexual decision-making. This study assessed the feasibility and acceptability of…

HIV/sexually transmitted infection (STI) risk-reduction interventions are needed to address the complex risk behaviors among African-American female adolescents in disadvantaged communities in North Carolina. In a two-group randomized trial, we reached 237 sexually active, substance-using African-American female adolescents, to test a…

Sexual risk reduction interventions are often ineffective for women who drink alcohol. The present study examines whether an alcohol-related sexual risk reduction intervention successfully trains women to increase assertive communication behaviors and decrease aggressive communication behaviors. Women demonstrated their communication skills during…

The goal of the study was to examine the effectiveness of a group intervention in reducing risks of contracting human papillomavirus (HPV) among college-aged women. Using a randomized design, the study examined the effectiveness of an HPV educational group intervention guided by the Theory of Planned Behavior. The intervention was provided in a…

Service-learning is, by nature, continually evolving. Seifer (1996) stressed the importance of partnerships between communities and schools, and stated that reflection should facilitate the connection between practice and theory, and lead to critical thinking. Before these reflective activities occur, however, much can be done to maximize…

Social and public health scientists are increasingly interested in applying system dynamics theory to improve understanding and to harness the forces of change within complex, multilevel systems that affect community intervention implementation, effects, and sustainability. Building a system dynamics model based on ethnographic case study has the…

Objective: A pilot randomized clinical trial (RCT) examined effectiveness of HIV/STD Safer Sex Skills Building + Alcohol (SSB+A) intervention for women with Alcohol Use Disorders (AUDs) in a residential treatment setting. Method: After randomizing thirty-six women with AUDs and reporting having intercourse with a male partner in the past 180 days…

Girls face unique developmental challenges in childhood and adolescence. Compared to boys, girls tend to report more mental health problems, and they are susceptible to reproductive health risks, such as unwanted pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease. While a number of evidence-based programs have been found to be effective at reducing risk…

Adolescent girls incarcerated in a state reformatory (N = 246) were recruited and assigned to an 18-session health education program or a time-equivalent HIV prevention program. Cohorts were assigned to conditions using a randomized block design separated by a washout period to reduce contamination. Post intervention, girls in the HIV risk…

U.S. teen pregnancy and birth rates remain among the highest in the western world. And although Latina teens were the only group to experience a decline in birth rate between 2006 and 2007, they continue to experience the highest rates in most states and across the nation. About half of all Latina teens experience pregnancy before they reach their…

This study evaluates the efficacy of Keepin' It Safe, a theory-based, gender-specific, CD-ROM-mediated HIV prevention program for urban, early adolescent girls. Intervention effects were examined in a randomized, pretest-posttest wait-list control-group design. Changes in HIV/AIDS knowledge, protective attitudes, and skills for reducing HIV…

This paper argues that many internationally financed literacy programs do not sufficiently take into consideration important daily life issues of the learners, including nutritional deficiencies that may hinder learning, or of children-parent-society interactions that may improve learning. As a result, many programs have become synonymous with…

Female sex workers (FSW) are at high risk of acquiring sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including HIV, and putting their clients and other partners at risk for infection. There is considerable evidence that Social Cognitive Theory (SCT)?based interventions are effective in reducing high-risk sexual behavior among at-risk populations in the…