For decades, medical perspectives have dominated the literature studying HIV/AIDS. More recently, issues related to HIV concerning the behavioral and psychological well-being of persons with AIDS (PWA) have surfaced. Much of the research in this field focuses on the coping strategies of PWA as they relate to the race, gender, and age of the infected individual. Additionally, studies examining how families cope with HIV focus on family functioning and caring for PWA. Still missing from this literature however, is an understanding of the different ways in which PWA cope with their illness, and how they come to use particular coping strategies.
This paper examines the ways in which individuals cope with HIV. I speculate that the mode of transmission will influence the mechanisms individuals use cope. For example, individuals who contract HIV from a blood transfusion will use coping strategies that are different from an individual who has contracted HIV from having shared infected needles or from having sexual relations with members of the same sex. I link this difference in coping to the different kinds of stigma attached to these behaviors. This study finds that coping with HIV is complex and takes many forms. The men in this study use a variety of coping strategies, often at the same time. Social support and stigma are particularly important in the choosing and implementation of particular coping strategies. I argue that because coping takes many forms, we need to approach coping as not always being only “active” or only “passive”. Doing so will allow a better understanding of coping as it relates to stigma and social support.