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The level of tolerance of Canadians towards people with HIV/AIDS was examined through a number of statements. While most Canadians do not blame people with HIV/AIDS for their condition and most feel they could be friends with someone living with HIV/AIDS, they are less certain as to whether they feel comfortable having them serve the public.
Less than one in ten (eight per cent) agree that they could not be friends with someone who has HIV/AIDS while the vast majority (84 per cent) believe they could be friends with someone with HIV/AIDS. Furthermore, over three-quarters do not believe that people infected with HIV/AIDS through sex or drug use have gotten what they deserve, although one in ten (11 per cent) do agree with this statement. A significant portion of the population, however, does not believe that people with HIV/AIDS should be allowed to serve the public in certain occupations. While two-thirds (67 per cent) agree that people with HIV/AIDS should be allowed to serve the public in positions like hairstylists, fewer than four in ten (38 per cent) believe that people with HIV/AIDS should be allowed to serve the public in positions like dentists and cooks. In fact, almost half of Canadians (44 per cent) believe that they should not be allowed to serve the public in these capacities.
The levels of tolerance towards people with HIV/AIDS is significantly different among people in the United States. In 1997, nearly three in ten Americans (28 per cent) believed that "people who got AIDS through sex or drug use have gotten what they deserve". In 1999, one fourth of Americans held this view.1
Similarly, the level of tolerance afforded those afflicted with HIV is seen in other circumstances as well. Previous research has shown that a majority of Canadians (85 per cent) believed the best solution for treating injection drug users was enrolment in rehabilitation programs rather than more drastic measures such as alienating them from society completely.2
In summary, senior citizens, those with lower education and income and knowledge tend to be less comfortable with HIV/AIDS in their own circle of contacts or serving the public and tend to place blame on victims more readily than other Canadians do. This is also true of people born outside Canada. On the other hand, upper education and income Canadians, those with higher knowledge levels and/or who know someone with HIV/AIDS tend to be the most comfortable and sympathetic towards people with HIV/AIDS. |
Canadians exhibit somewhat less tolerance or acceptance when asked to rate their level of comfort with direct contact with individuals who have HIV/AIDS. Most Canadians (over 70 per cent) would be somewhat or very comfortable working in an office where someone developed HIV/AIDS. The level of comfort is the same regardless of whether the co-worker is male or female. A similar proportion would feel somewhat or very comfortable shopping at a small neighbourhood grocery store if they found out that the owner had HIV/AIDS, however 31 per cent would be uncomfortable. The proportion who are somewhat to very comfortable drops, however, to just over half the population (55 per cent) if their child was attending a school where one of the students was known to have HIV/AIDS, and 43 per cent would be uncomfortable in this situation. Furthermore, in a more risky scenario, less than half of Canadians would feel somewhat or very comfortable if a close friend or relative was dating someone with HIV/AIDS. It would appear, therefore, that the comfort level declines as the contact becomes more direct and personal.
Findings from these six scenarios were used to form the basis of a "comfort scale", using factor analysis. This scale is used in the creation of the typology (see chapter 8), and also as another independent variable in the analyses of the findings to be presented throughout the remainder of the report. The index ranges in scores from zero to four. When these six scenarios are combined into a "comfort scale", close to one in four (24 per cent) Canadians demonstrate a low level of comfort with HIV/AIDS (comfortable in only one or two of these six scenarios), 41 per cent demonstrate a moderate level of comfort (comfortable in two or three scenarios), and 35 per cent have a high level of comfort (comfortable in more than three of the six scenarios).
In summary, senior citizens, those who are not Canadian-born, and those apt to distance themselves from the issue are all less likely to be comfortable in these situations. Those who are Canadian-born, who have a high level of self-rated knowledge, and who know someone with HIV/AIDS are more likely to feel comfortable. Education and income and actual knowledge are also linked to comfort with all scenarios except the example of having a close friend or relative dating someone with AIDS. |
Close to four in ten Canadians (39 per cent) know or have known someone with HIV/AIDS, while 60 per cent do not and have not in the past.
Those who know or have known someone with HIV/AIDS are more likely to believe that HIV/AIDS is a serious problem (43 per cent do), are more likely to rate their knowledge of HIV/AIDS as high (52 per cent do), are more likely to be comfortable with HIV/AIDS and less likely to distance themselves from the issue. This suggests that knowing someone with HIV/AIDS has an impact on one"s knowledge of HIV/AIDS, as well as on perceptions and beliefs. |
Just over half of those who know or have known someone with HIV/AIDS state that this had little or no impact on their behaviour towards this person, while three in ten state that this had a moderate impact, and 15 per cent say it had a great impact. When asked how their behaviour changed, roughly one-quarter report that they became more cautious about casual contact with this person and some (11 per cent) reduced the time they spent with this person. On the other hand, roughly one-quarter said they expressed more sympathy toward that person as a result of this knowledge, became more supportive of that person (16 per cent), or practiced safer sex with that partner (five per cent). More generally, two in ten indicate that knowing someone with HIV/AIDS increased their awareness of HIV/AIDS (22 per cent).
Overall, it appears that those who report a great impact on their behaviour are more likely to have become more supportive or expressed more sympathy towards that person, and less likely to have become more cautious about casual contact. Certainly, from the findings, a "great impact" cannot be construed to mean a negative impact. The impact on behaviour can result in increased awareness of HIV/AIDS, as well as sympathy and support for the individual in question.
So, women, those who think HIV/AIDS is a serious problem and individuals with a high self-rated knowledge are more likely to report behavioural changes towards someone they know or knew with the disease. This is also true among seniors and residents from Quebec and Ontario. On the other hand, university graduates, those with high actual knowledge of the subject and who are comfortable with people with HIV/AIDS are less likely to say that their behaviour changed. |