HIV/AIDS knowledge among men who have sex with men: applying the item response theory
OBJECTIVE To evaluate the level of HIV/AIDS knowledge among men who have sex with men in Brazil using the latent trait model estimated by Item Response Theory. METHODS Multicenter, cross-sectional study, carried out in ten Brazilian cities between 2008 and 2009. Adult men who have sex with men wer...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Universidade de São Paulo
2014-04-01
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| Series: | Revista de Saúde Pública |
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| Online Access: | http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0034-89102014000200206&lng=en&tlng=en |
| _version_ | 1811334450259165184 |
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| author | Raquel Regina de Freitas Magalhães Gomes José Rodrigues Batista Maria das Graças Braga Ceccato Lígia Regina Franco Sansigolo Kerr Mark Drew Crosland Guimarães |
| author_facet | Raquel Regina de Freitas Magalhães Gomes José Rodrigues Batista Maria das Graças Braga Ceccato Lígia Regina Franco Sansigolo Kerr Mark Drew Crosland Guimarães |
| author_sort | Raquel Regina de Freitas Magalhães Gomes |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | OBJECTIVE To evaluate the level of HIV/AIDS knowledge among men who have sex with men in Brazil using the latent trait model estimated by Item Response Theory. METHODS Multicenter, cross-sectional study, carried out in ten Brazilian cities between 2008 and 2009. Adult men who have sex with men were recruited (n = 3,746) through Respondent Driven Sampling. HIV/AIDS knowledge was ascertained through ten statements by face-to-face interview and latent scores were obtained through two-parameter logistic modeling (difficulty and discrimination) using Item Response Theory. Differential item functioning was used to examine each item characteristic curve by age and schooling. RESULTS Overall, the HIV/AIDS knowledge scores using Item Response Theory did not exceed 6.0 (scale 0-10), with mean and median values of 5.0 (SD = 0.9) and 5.3, respectively, with 40.7% of the sample with knowledge levels below the average. Some beliefs still exist in this population regarding the transmission of the virus by insect bites, by using public restrooms, and by sharing utensils during meals. With regard to the difficulty and discrimination parameters, eight items were located below the mean of the scale and were considered very easy, and four items presented very low discrimination parameter (< 0.34). The absence of difficult items contributed to the inaccuracy of the measurement of knowledge among those with median level and above. CONCLUSIONS Item Response Theory analysis, which focuses on the individual properties of each item, allows measures to be obtained that do not vary or depend on the questionnaire, which provides better ascertainment and accuracy of knowledge scores. Valid and reliable scales are essential for monitoring HIV/AIDS knowledge among the men who have sex with men population over time and in different geographic regions, and this psychometric model brings this advantage. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T17:08:02Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-824f0f74d3cd4d0f9b2439fc09c98c80 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1518-8787 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T17:08:02Z |
| publishDate | 2014-04-01 |
| publisher | Universidade de São Paulo |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Revista de Saúde Pública |
| spelling | doaj.art-824f0f74d3cd4d0f9b2439fc09c98c802022-12-22T02:38:23ZengUniversidade de São PauloRevista de Saúde Pública1518-87872014-04-0148220621510.1590/S0034-8910.2014048004911S0034-89102014000200206HIV/AIDS knowledge among men who have sex with men: applying the item response theoryRaquel Regina de Freitas Magalhães GomesJosé Rodrigues BatistaMaria das Graças Braga CeccatoLígia Regina Franco Sansigolo KerrMark Drew Crosland GuimarãesOBJECTIVE To evaluate the level of HIV/AIDS knowledge among men who have sex with men in Brazil using the latent trait model estimated by Item Response Theory. METHODS Multicenter, cross-sectional study, carried out in ten Brazilian cities between 2008 and 2009. Adult men who have sex with men were recruited (n = 3,746) through Respondent Driven Sampling. HIV/AIDS knowledge was ascertained through ten statements by face-to-face interview and latent scores were obtained through two-parameter logistic modeling (difficulty and discrimination) using Item Response Theory. Differential item functioning was used to examine each item characteristic curve by age and schooling. RESULTS Overall, the HIV/AIDS knowledge scores using Item Response Theory did not exceed 6.0 (scale 0-10), with mean and median values of 5.0 (SD = 0.9) and 5.3, respectively, with 40.7% of the sample with knowledge levels below the average. Some beliefs still exist in this population regarding the transmission of the virus by insect bites, by using public restrooms, and by sharing utensils during meals. With regard to the difficulty and discrimination parameters, eight items were located below the mean of the scale and were considered very easy, and four items presented very low discrimination parameter (< 0.34). The absence of difficult items contributed to the inaccuracy of the measurement of knowledge among those with median level and above. CONCLUSIONS Item Response Theory analysis, which focuses on the individual properties of each item, allows measures to be obtained that do not vary or depend on the questionnaire, which provides better ascertainment and accuracy of knowledge scores. Valid and reliable scales are essential for monitoring HIV/AIDS knowledge among the men who have sex with men population over time and in different geographic regions, and this psychometric model brings this advantage.http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0034-89102014000200206&lng=en&tlng=enHomossexualidade MasculinaGrupos de RiscoConhecimentos, Atitudes e Prática em SaúdeSíndrome de Imunodeficiência Adquirida, prevenção & controleEstudo Multicêntrico |
| spellingShingle | Raquel Regina de Freitas Magalhães Gomes José Rodrigues Batista Maria das Graças Braga Ceccato Lígia Regina Franco Sansigolo Kerr Mark Drew Crosland Guimarães HIV/AIDS knowledge among men who have sex with men: applying the item response theory Revista de Saúde Pública Homossexualidade Masculina Grupos de Risco Conhecimentos, Atitudes e Prática em Saúde Síndrome de Imunodeficiência Adquirida, prevenção & controle Estudo Multicêntrico |
| title | HIV/AIDS knowledge among men who have sex with men: applying the item response theory |
| title_full | HIV/AIDS knowledge among men who have sex with men: applying the item response theory |
| title_fullStr | HIV/AIDS knowledge among men who have sex with men: applying the item response theory |
| title_full_unstemmed | HIV/AIDS knowledge among men who have sex with men: applying the item response theory |
| title_short | HIV/AIDS knowledge among men who have sex with men: applying the item response theory |
| title_sort | hiv aids knowledge among men who have sex with men applying the item response theory |
| topic | Homossexualidade Masculina Grupos de Risco Conhecimentos, Atitudes e Prática em Saúde Síndrome de Imunodeficiência Adquirida, prevenção & controle Estudo Multicêntrico |
| url | http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0034-89102014000200206&lng=en&tlng=en |
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