Psychological well-being of housewives living with HIV/AIDS: stigma and forgiveness

Abstract

Introduction: Housewives living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) encounter both social and psychological issues that are mainly associated with stigmatization as a result of their medical condition. Stigmatization is even stronger among housewives living with HIV as compared with husbands living with the same virus. The reason of this unequal stigmatization can originate from social expectations of feminine behavior as well as the common association between sexually transmitted infections and extramarital sex or drug abuse. This study aimed to investigate the influence of stigma and forgiveness toward psychological well-being among housewives living with HIV/AIDS. Material and methods: This was a cross-sectional study, with purposive sampling used to select participants based on characteristics and the objective of the study. The study was community-based and involved one hundred and twelve housewives living with HIV/AIDS. Information about HIV infection by a husband were obtained from self-reports. All participants signed an informed consent. Data collection was carried out for two months and information were collected with the use of questionnaires. The derived data were analyzed using stepwise regression. Results: Stigma and forgiveness influenced psychological well-being of housewives living with HIV/ AIDS. Instrumental stigma and symbolic stigma were both negatively correlated with psychological well-being, respectively (β =-0.705, β =-0.769; p < 0.01). Moreover, interpersonal forgiveness positively related to psychological well-being (β = 0.356, p < 0.01). Conclusions: Forgiveness helped housewives to live more in the present moment and to reconcile with the past. Forgiveness could influence personal outcome and have a positive impact on a relationship. The act of forgiveness was significantly influential on the standard of health and well-being. Limitation of the study was that all variables were measured by self-report, which may have some bias. Hence, further research is required to measure all variables by an in-depth interview, exploring attitudes toward stigma and forgiveness.

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