A Community-Based HIV Prevention Strategy for Priority Populations

HIV-related behavior change research in Zambia and globally has affirmed that moving from awareness to action requires interventions that go beyond the individual level. Z-CHPP’s approach to behavior change follows the Network-Individual-Resource Model, an ecological model that argues that prevention, access to treatment, and adherence efforts are more successful and sustainable when they (1) prompt positive behavior changes that can be sustained by existing individual and community resources; (2) are consistent with the individual’s current situation/developmental stage; (3) are trusted and valued; and (4) target high HIV risk networks. This model recognizes the interplay between factors at the individual, interpersonal, community, institutional and structural levels, and holds that risks and prevention needs depend importantly on the life stages and socio-economic circumstances of individuals.