HIV/AIDS - An Attitudinal Survey
Final Report

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8. Typology of Canadians

In addition to the basic analyses cited throughout the report, a typology of Canadians was created to illustrate the manner in which knowledge and attitudes about HIV/AIDS coalesces most often in the general public. The methods used are factor and reliability analyses (leading to the computation of several indices presented earlier in the report), and cluster analysis.

In order to identify and use underlying dimensions (called factors) and to limit the redundancy of the measurement variables, twelve scale-based variables were included in the factor analysis. The three factors created were the basis for the knowledge, comfort and distancing indices described in chapters Two, Three and Four. The reliability analysis was conducted on these factors, resulting in alpha coefficients that were 0.65 or higher, suggesting that the mean scales computed on the base of the listed dimensions are statistically reliable measures.

Using these three factors, as well as the perceived increasing risk of HIV/AIDS today compared to ten years ago, a cluster analysis was performed, the purpose of which was to identify mutually exclusive and interpretable groups. A five-cluster solution was selected based on the results. The description of these segments follows.

a) Segment One: Informed Concerned

This segment represents the largest share of Canadians (42 per cent). They have the highest knowledge (70 per cent scored high), are the most comfortable with people with HIV/AIDS (43 per cent scored high) and are least likely to distance themselves from the issue (28 per cent scored low). They are also least likely to believe that HIV/AIDS is much less of a problem than it was ten years ago (97 per cent disagree that it is diminishing over time compared to 59 per cent overall).

• This group is most likely to know about methods of transmission and testing, and generally demonstrates a good understanding of HIV/AIDS (e.g., potential time lag between HIV and AIDS and the nature of the disease) and know that there is no known cure. They are slightly more likely to be aware of a federal government strategy regarding HIV/AIDS.
   
• They believe that HIV/AIDS is a very serious issue, that has not diminished in the last five years and that the rate of infection is increasing over time. They also do not believe that health groups have exaggerated the seriousness of the problem. They are more apt to believe that testing and protective measures taken by people with HIV/AIDS have increased over time. They do not tend to see this disease as one belonging to the third world, the gay community or to drug users, exclusively.
   
• They are very comfortable in the situations described in the survey, are unlikely to blame victims for contracting HIV, say that they personally could be friends with someone with HIV/AIDS and generally believe that HIV infected people should be able to serve the public (although even among this group more than half hesitate when given the examples of dentists and cooks).
   
• They are marginally more likely than members of the other groups to report getting their HIV/AIDS information from health magazines, television health programs. They also express a stronger preference for obtaining HIV information from websites. They place a high degree of reliability on health care professionals and the scientific community, as well as (to a lesser degree) organizations representing people with HIV/AIDS and people infected with HIV/AIDS.
   
• Members of this group are more likely to support federal government involvement in the area of HIV/AIDS. They are also more apt to believe that the federal government focuses most of its attention on educating the public and research into treatment. The same responses are provided when asked about where the government should focus its attention, with a stronger emphasis placed on educating the public (58 per cent). Similarly, they are more likely to suggest that the emphasis should be on prevention (63 per cent) rather than treatment. They also are more apt to suggest an international rather than national focus (62 per cent). Two in three (68 per cent) believe that the federal government should spend more than it did ten years ago on HIV/AIDS.
   
• This group is the most likely to say that they know (or have known) someone with HIV/AIDS (44 per cent). They are the most likely to be sexually active (76 per cent are), which is perhaps not surprising given the over representation of individuals between the ages of 25 and 54. They are also most likely to say that they never practice safer sex, citing one partner as the predominant reason. This group is the least likely to perceive themselves to be at risk of contracting HIV/AIDS, nonetheless, they are also the group most likely to report HIV testing (32 per cent) in the past two years.
   
• This group is slightly over represented by women and among individuals who describe their household as a couple with children. They are the most affluent Canadians of any segment. They are more likely than the national average to be born in Canada and under represent visible minorities.

This segment is the most knowledgeable and comfortable with people with HIV/AIDS. They also tend to view the problem as very serious and do not believe that it is diminishing with time. They tend to rely on health magazines and television health programs for their information and report a strong preference for websites as a source of additional information. They place considerable confidence in health professionals and authorities as reliable sources of information. Their support for government involvement is high and they believe that a strong focus should be placed on public education and prevention. They are most likely to know someone with HIV/AIDS. They do not tend to practice safer sex, even though they are the most active group, citing monogamy as the reason (and generally do not perceive themselves to be at risk).

b) Segment Two: Informed Unconcerned

This segment comprises 24 per cent of Canadians. Members of this group have (on average) the second highest score on the knowledge index (61 per cent scored high compared with 46 per cent overall) are comfortable about HIV infected people (38 per cent scored high compared with 35 per cent overall) and do not tend to distance themselves from the issue of HIV/AIDS (36 per cent scored high versus 41 per cent overall). They are distinguishable from the first segment in only a few areas: they are younger and less affluent; and they believe that the magnitude of the problem is diminishing with time (54 per cent versus 23 per cent overall).

• With respect to knowledge, members of this group are less likely to be misinformed about methods of transmission and testing. They also know that there is no cure and HIV/AIDS is manifested in an inability of body to defend itself and that the onset of AIDS may not occur for ten years of more after contracting HIV.
   
• This group does tend to minimize the problem to some degree however. They are somewhat more likely to view it as a moderate rather than a serious problem today. They believe that the risk of contracting HIV is the same or less than it was five years ago and that the problem is much less serious than it was ten years ago (54 per cent agree with the latter statement in the survey).
   
• They are comfortable in most scenarios involving a person with HIV/AIDS and tend to report that they could be friends with someone with HIV/AIDS. They also do not tend to distance themselves from the disease. They are unlikely to view it as a disease that is contained to the third world, the gay community or to drug users, nor do they believe that people who contract HIV get what they deserve. In fact, they are most likely to say that people with HIV/AIDS are doing more today to protect others.
   
• In terms of media preferences, this group is slightly more likely to rely on television news and schools to get information about HIV/AIDS, and also adds websites as a source for general health information. They express a slightly greater preference than many other Canadians do for obtaining information about HIV/AIDS from websites.
   
• Given this, it is perhaps not surprising to see that ten per cent more of this group say that the government should spend less than it did in the past. They suggest that a slightly higher emphasis should be placed on prevention, compared with treatment, with respect to government focus.
   
• There are few significant differences for this group in terms of sexual or testing behaviour, compared with the national average.
   
• There is a slight over-representation of individuals in their early 20s in this group, so it is not surprising that they are more apt to focus on the risk of pregnancy as a main motive for practicing safer sex (both in general and in terms of the own personal behaviour).

This group is also quite knowledgeable and generally comfortable with people with HIV/AIDS. They tend to minimize the seriousness of the issue, however, and see the problem as getting better over time. Their preferred focus for government attention is on educating the public and they more often rely on television news, information from school and websites as reliable sources of information, which is not surprising given that this is the youngest segment of the Canadian population.

c) Segment Three: Moderately Informed Concerned

This group includes 14 per cent of Canadians. These individuals have middle levels of knowledge about HIV/AIDS (56 per cent scored low and 44 per cent scored in the mid-range) and are moderately comfortable about being exposed to HIV infected people (30 per cent scored low). On the other hand, they are quite concerned about the issue, and do not believe that AIDS is much less of a problem in Canada today than it was ten years ago (89 per cent). They are less likely than many other Canadians to distance themselves from the issue, typically disagreeing that AIDS is a disease contained to third world countries, the gay community or drug users and they do not believe that HIV infected people get what they deserve (29 per cent scored low versus 23 per cent overall).

• This group has an average level of knowledge and as such their responses regarding methods of transmission, testing, most affected groups and whether or not there is a cure are generally reflective of the national results.
   
• In terms of perceived risk, they are the most likely group to believe that it is becoming greater than it was five years ago. Most (80 per cent) believe that the rate of HIV infection is increasing compared to ten years ago, although they are somewhat more likely than average to believe that there is a cure for HIV/AIDS. Two in three (69 per cent) believe that the federal government should spend more on HIV/AIDS today.
   
• In terms of comfort with various situations, they are more likely than average to say that HIV infected people should not serve the public (53 per cent disagree with this idea, based on the examples of dentists and cooks). They report some discomfort in all of the described scenarios with HIV/AIDS people.
   
• Their views regarding the reliability of different sources of information as well as their perception of the focus and involvement of the Government of Canada is as strong as cited by other Canadians.
   
• This group is somewhat less likely to report knowing an HIV-infected person.
   
• Demographically, there is little about this group that sets them apart from other Canadians. They are marginally over-represented among older Canadians and in Quebec.

This group is generally middle of the road in most areas. They do, however, perceive HIV/AIDS to be a very serious issue and are very concerned about it, citing strong support for government involvement.

d) Segment Four: Moderately Informed Deniers

This segment comprises 11 per cent of Canadians and is characterized by a low to mid-level of knowledge about HIV/AIDS (62 per cent scored low versus 21 per cent overall), and fairly strong discomfort around people with HIV/AIDS (43 per cent scored low versus 24 per cent overall). They tend to minimize and distance themselves from the issue (83 per cent scored high on this measure, compared with only 41 per cent overall). They are most likely to believe that AIDS is much less of a problem in Canada today than it was ten years ago, and that AIDS is a disease belonging to the third world, the gay community and drug users. This group is, in many ways, similar to the fifth group (Uninformed Uncomfortable), however, their knowledge level is somewhat higher and their discomfort around people with AIDS is not as acute, but the distance they place between themselves and HIV/AIDS is widest.

• This group is more likely than average to be misinformed about methods of transmission and testing. They are less likely than average to cite homosexual men and injection drug users as most affected groups. They are also more apt to believe that there is a cure for HIV/AIDS.
   
• This group tends not to view HIV/AIDS as being as serious a problem as other groups do. They are less apt than many others to believe that the risk is decreasing from five years ago. Most individuals in this segment (83 per cent) believe that the problem is much less serious than it was ten years ago, and that health groups have exaggerated the risk of HIV/AIDS. They also believe that there are effective treatments.
   
• As part of this compartmentalized view of HIV/AIDS, this group is more likely to believe that blood donors have a higher risk of contracting HIV.
   
• They are the second most uncomfortable around people with HIV/AIDS and the most likely to say that they could not be friends with someone who has AIDS (perhaps driven by their view that HIV/AIDS happens to other people). They are also as likely as the Uninformed Uncomfortable (the next group described) to believe that people who get HIV/AIDS through sex or needles, get what they deserve.
   
• Members of the group are more apt than any other group to place confidence in the media as a reliable source for information. As with the Uninformed Uncomfortable (the next group described), these individuals also tend to place greater confidence in the information provided by their friends and family than other Canadians do.
   
• Also, as part of the distance that this group puts between themselves and HIV/AIDS, they tend to favour an international, rather than national focus for the Government of Canada, with an emphasis on specific target groups, rather than the general public at large.
   
• They are less likely to report knowing someone with HIV/AIDS than any other group of Canadians (69 per cent say that they do not know anyone). Even though 42 per cent of this group are not sexually active, the group overall perceives a slightly higher average personal risk of contracting HIV/AIDS than other groups. As with the Uninformed Uncomfortable (the next group described), they are unlikely to have been tested for HIV/AIDS.
   
• This group has a higher than average proportion of senior citizens (although not as high as found in the next group) and lower than average education and income profile (but not as low as with the next group). This group is also over-represented among Quebec residents and those born outside Canada.

This group has fairly low knowledge and high discomfort around people with HIV/AIDS. They are characterized by a strong tendency to minimize the problem and risk. As such, they tend to view HIV/AIDS as someone else's problem and place blame fairly readily. As part of this tendency to compartmentalize the issue, they believe that the government focus should be away from Canada and on specific groups. As might be expected, they are least likely to know someone with HIV/AIDS. They place more faith in the media as a reliable source for information about HIV/AIDS than any other group.

e) Segment Five: Uninformed Uncomfortable

This segment comprises only six per cent of Canadians. Individuals in this group are characterized by the lowest knowledge level about HIV/AIDS by far (100 per cent scored in the lowest range of the index, compared with only 21 per cent of Canadians overall). They also have a great discomfort around HIV infected people (61 per cent scored low versus 24 per cent in overall sample). This group does not particularly minimize the AIDS problem in Canada today as much less than it was ten years ago, however they are very likely to distance themselves from the issue of HIV/AIDS, believing that AIDS is a disease found mostly in third world countries, and among the gay people and drug users, and that people who contract HIV through sex or shared needles get what they deserve (78 per cent scored high on the distance index, compared to 41 per cent overall).

• In terms of knowledge, this group is very misinformed about methods of transmission and testing, as well as about groups most affected by HIV. Roughly half of this group believe that there is a cure for HIV/AIDS and are least apt to know that HIV involves the body's inability to defend itself against disease and infection.
   
• They tend to believe that HIV/AIDS is no less of a problem that it was ten years ago, in fact they think that the risk is increasing over time. On the other hand, they believe that health groups have exaggerated the problem.
   
• They express the greatest discomfort (60 to 80 per cent) in any situation involving a person with HIV/AIDS and tend to believe that people get what they deserve. They are the most opposed to the idea of people with HIV/AIDS serving the public (63 per cent said that people should not work in such positions as dentists and cooks). Although this group is less apt to report knowing someone with HIV/AIDS than average, their typical reaction would be to spend less time with them, if they do know someone.
   
• Although this group does not have a particularly distinguishable pattern of finding out about HIV/AIDS, they are characterized by greater skepticism of doctors, health care professionals and scientists, as well as people with HIV and organizations representing the interests of HIV infected people. They are more apt than any other group to view family and friends as reliable.
   
• This group has little knowledge of what the Government of Canada focuses on with respect to HIV/AIDS; however, they are less supportive of government involvement than most Canadians.
   
• Although the majority of this group is not sexually active, their perceived risk of contracting HIV/AIDS is higher than that of many Canadians. On the other hand, they are less apt to have been tested than any other group.
   
• This group includes a disproportionately high number of men, senior citizens (42 per cent of this group are over 65), low education and income individuals, and individuals who live alone. They are somewhat more likely to be found among Quebec residents. There is a higher proportion than average who were born outside Canada and belong to a visible minority group.

This group is generally characterized by the lowest knowledge, greatest misinformation and misperceptions, a strong sense of discomfort, bordering on fear, of people with HIV/AIDS and, as a result, a somewhat elevated perception of their own risk. They are more skeptical of knowledge figures and organizations as sources of information than other Canadians and are generally less supportive of government involvement in HIV/AIDS. They are more often found among low income and education segments of society.

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