When culture and health collide: feminine honor endorsement and attitudes toward catch-up HPV vaccinations in college women.

Sexual promiscuity stigma constitutes a significant barrier which prevents young women from receiving catch-up human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccinations. Our objective was to explore how this stigma may be particularly detrimental to women in cultures of honor, where women are expected to maintain a reputation of sexual purity.Participants were a sample of 182 young women who had not previously received an HPV vaccination.We measured feminine honor endorsement, HPV sexual promiscuity stigma, HPV vaccination shame, HPV vaccination intentions, and a set of covariates.Analyses revealed that the significant association between feminine honor endorsement and HPV vaccination intentions is fully explained by HPV sexual purity stigma and HPV vaccination shame.These findings indicate that honor-endorsing women are significantly impacted by sexual purity stigma, minimizing intentions to receive HPV vaccinations. These findings also highlight the need for the inclusion of cultural factors in the study of HPV vaccine uptake.

Damaged Masculinity: How Honor Endorsement Can Influence Prostate Cancer Screening Decision-Making and Prostate Cancer Mortality Rates.

Prior research has established factors that contribute to the likelihood that men seek out prostate cancer screenings. The current study addresses how endorsing the ideology found in cultures of honor may serve as a barrier to prostate cancer screenings. Two studies were conducted which analyzed the impact of stigma on men's decisions to seek out prostate cancer screenings (Study 1) as well as how prostate cancer deaths may be higher in the culture of honor regions due to men's reticence to seek out screenings (Study 2). Results suggest that older, honor-endorsing men are less likely to have ever sought out a prostate cancer screening due to screening stigma and that an honor-oriented region (southern and western United States) displays higher rates of prostate cancer death than a non-honor-oriented region (northern United States). These findings suggest that honor may be a cultural framework to consider when practitioners address patients' screening-related concerns.

Feminine honor endorsement and young women's STI screenings.

Research has identified stigma as a significant barrier to seeking out STI screenings. Such stigma for women typically includes perceptions of sexual promiscuity or lack of loyalty to one's partner, which may ultimately lead women to be reluctant to receive an actual screening. The current study analyzed whether feminine honor endorsement, which is centered around maintaining a reputation of sexual chastity, might decrease women's likelihood to seek out an STI screening. Using a sample of 228 college women in the Southern United States, the researchers assessed levels of feminine honor endorsement, likelihood to seek out an STI screening, STI screening stigma, and STI screening shame. Results indicate that feminine honor endorsement does decrease the likelihood to seek out STI screenings for young women, and that this association is mediated by sexual purity stigma and shame (Mediated Effect-ME = -.02, SE = .01, 95% CI [-.045, -.003], p < .05). These findings reveal a culturally specific barrier for women who are soon to be in an age group where STIs occur most frequently, perhaps making this cultural mindset particularly problematic for this population. Implications for programs to increase STI screening rates in higher-risk populations are discussed.

Affective and Cognitive Attitudes on Cervical Health Behaviors Among Asian American Women.

Cervical cancer is a major cause of death for Vietnamese and Korean American women, yet their screening rates remain low. This study explored factors influencing cervical health behaviors of these populations, using a 2-dimensional model (ie, affect and cognition) of attitude structure approach. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 33 participants. A semantic content analysis was used to identify major codes and themes across the transcripts. Multiple aspects of both negative and positive affect and cognition, which led to 3 different cervical health behaviors (avoidance, ambivalence, and acceptance), emerged from the interviews. The clinical implications of these findings are discussed.

Searching for God: Illness-Related Mortality Threats and Religious Search Volume in Google in 16 Nations.

We tested predictions about religiosity and terror management processes in 16 nations. Specifically, we examined weekly variation in Google search volume in each nation for 12 years (all weeks for which data were available). In all 16 nations, higher than usual weekly Google search volume for life-threatening illnesses (cancer, diabetes, and hypertension) predicted increases in search volume for religious content (e.g., God, Jesus, prayer) in the following week. This effect held up after controlling for (a) recent past and annual variation in religious search volume, (b) increases in search volume associated with religious holidays, and (c) variation in searches for a non-life-threatening illness ("sore throat"). Terror management threat reduction processes appear to occur across the globe. Furthermore, they may occur over much longer periods than those studied in the laboratory. Managing fears of death via religious belief regulation appears to be culturally pervasive.

Feasibility of Utilizing Ethnic Beauty Salons for Cervical Cancer Screening Education.

The purpose of this study was to assess the feasibility of using ethnic beauty salons to reach out to Vietnamese and Korean American women for cervical cancer screening education. Participants (N = 62) were conveniently recruited from ethnic beauty salons located in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Two feasibility questionnaires were separately administered to cosmetologists and their customers. Findings support the view that ethnic beauty salons can be used as a gateway to reach out to these populations, and cosmetologists have the potential to operate as community lay health workers to deliver cervical cancer screening education aimed at reducing disparities in cervical cancer and screening to their ethnic customers.

Socioecological perspectives on cervical cancer and cervical cancer screening among Asian American women.

Although cervical cancer is one of the most commonly diagnosed cancers among Vietnamese American women (VAW) and Korean American women (KAW), both groups consistently report much lower rates of cervical cancer screening compared with other Asian ethnic subgroups and non-Hispanic Whites. This study aimed to explore multilevel factors that may underlie low screening rates among VAW and KAW living in a city where their ethnic communities are relatively small. The socioecological model was used as a conceptual framework. Thirty participants were conveniently recruited from ethnic beauty salons run by VA and KA cosmetologists in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The participants' average age was 44.6 years (SD = .50; range = 21-60). Most participants were married (80 %) and employed (73.3 %), and had health insurance (83.3 %). A qualitative interview was conducted in Vietnamese or Korean and transcribed verbatim. A thematic content analysis was used to identify major codes, categories, and patterns across the transcripts. The study identified several factors at the individual (e.g., pregnancy, poverty, personality), interpersonal (e.g., family responsibility, mother as influential referent), and community (e.g., lack of availability, community size) levels. The study sheds light on four major areas that must be taken into consideration in the development of culturally appropriate, community-based interventions aimed to reduce disparities in cervical cancer screening among ethnic minority women in the United States: (1) ethnic community size and geographic location; (2) cross-cultural similarities and dissimilarities; (3) targeting of not only unmarried young women, but also close referents; and (4) utilization of trusted resources within social networks.