Global Health Institute Field Scholars

Youth Participation in HIV/AIDS Dramas: A Qualitative Assessment

Elizabeth Mackenzie Hill, Rollins School of Public Health

Ms. Hill, a graduate student in the Hubert Department of Global Health at the Rollins School of Public Health, worked with RAPSIDA, a non-profit organization in Rwanda that facilitates peer-led drama health clubs focusing on HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention. During her field experience, she assessed the effect health dramas have on the actors and actresses participating in them. The study's objective was to determine how youth in Rwanda conceptualize and create an HIV/AIDS drama and to explore how participating in this creative process affects the youth's peer interactions and intimate relationships. Ms. Hill conducted interviews and focus group discussions with 36 actors and actresses participating in the HIV/AIDS prevention dramas. She analyzed the data for thematic content and presented her findings to RAPSIDA, which aids the organization in identifying factors that influence the dramas created by the actors and actresses participating in its program, their perceptions of effective HIV/AIDS prevention messages, and possible strategies that could increase the effectiveness of RAPSIDA's interventions.

To read about Ms. Hill's experience from her perspective, click here.

Actors perform in a RAPSIDA play design to prevent the transmission of HIV/AIDS.

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