Marseille 2007
| Abstract #141 - Silence, Code and Moral Panic: The HIV/AIDS See-Saw | ||||
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Session: 6.8: Posters A (Poster) on Monday in Chaired by Authors: Presenting Author: Prof Eleanor Preston-Whyte - University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa |
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| Additional Authors: | ||||
| Aim: See-Saw Margery Daw Johnny shall have a new Master Two recurring themes run through the vast literature on HIV/AIDS; one an unwillingness to speak openly about the epidemic and of personal infection in particular, while the other is the mounting fear and moral panic that swells from time to time, and then abates within many wider community settings. Silence and coded speech are the touchstone of the first, while shared anger, sometimes unfocussed, but often quickly finding a target, characterizes the latter. This paper juxtaposes these themes in an attempt to capture and analyse the changing tenor of, and reactions to, the discovery HIV or AIDS infection, and to the complex and situational decision making that surrounds disclosure and nondisclosure. | ||||
| Method / Issue: Two recurring themes run through the vast literature on HIV/AIDS; one an unwillingness to speak openly about the epidemic and of personal infection in particular, while the other is the mounting fear and moral panic that swells from time to time, and then abates within many wider community settings. Silence and coded speech are the touchstone of the first, while shared anger, sometimes unfocussed, but often quickly finding a target, characterizes the latter. This paper juxtaposes these themes in an attempt to capture and analyse the changing tenor of, and reactions to, the discovery HIV or AIDS infection, and to the complex and situational decision making that surrounds disclosure and nondisclosure. | ||||
| Results / Comments: The narratives of HIV positive research participants were shot through with testimonies that appeared, at first sight, to be internally contradictory, and in which silence and secrecy versus speaking out appeared both separately and virtually simultaneously. | ||||
| Discussion: The first two lines of the old jingle that heads the paper capture the contrasting sensations that accompany riding on that childrens playground favourite the old fashioned See-Saw. It will be argued that the see-saw of emotions experienced in the playground prefigure and mirror the ongoing sensations of both personal and public fear, guilt, horror and morbid fascination evoked by confronting the possibility of infection, and by the process of deciding whether to test or not. The issues involved in deciding who to disclose to, and the degree of public disclosure one contemplates, evoke yet another see-saw of emotions. A nuanced understanding of these issues is critical, given that health care practitioners generally regard some level of disclosure as the critical step in accessing treatment. There is also a widespread belief that disclosure will lessen AIDS stigma, silence and public panic. | ||||
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