Population Council/Horizons
The Population Council is an international, nonprofit, nongovernmental organization, that conducts research in reproductive health; HIV/AIDS; and poverty, gender, and youth. The Population Council is the lead organization for the Horizons project (1997-2007), which has worked to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS and mitigate its impact on individuals and communities. Youth are an important component of Horizons’ work. Some youth-related publications are listed below; others can be found on the Horizons
Web site.
The Horizons Program and FHI/IMPACT developed a collaborative research study in 2004 to explore how adults and youth in Kenya define and perceive the ABC terms and behaviors. This document reports the findings, which highlight challenges in promoting each of the ABC behaviors, as well as some positive elements that can be built upon when developing programs.
Children and youth affected by AIDS typically face a wide range of stressful events and circumstances, including poverty, the loss of caregivers and loved ones, having to drop out of school, the burden of adult-like responsibilities, and social isolation. This report documents an evaluation of psychosocial support programs and the impact these programs have on vulnerable youth’s psychosocial well-being.
As national education programs incorporate HIV prevention into school curricula, policy-makers and educators need to know what they can expect from these initiatives. An evaluation study described in this report provides important insights into whether learners who participated in a fact-based, interactive course had more knowledge about HIV risks, prevention, and care practices; more positive attitudes toward prevention practices and people living with HIV and AIDS; and a higher prevalence of reported safe behaviors than comparable learners who did not participate in the course.
There is growing evidence that HIV/STI and violence risk for both young men and young women is linked to early socialization that promotes certain gender roles. These norms include support for men to have multiple partners or to maintain control over the behavior of their female partners. This report examines the effectiveness of interventions designed to improve young men’s attitudes toward gender norms and to reduce HIV/STI risk.
A participatory, group intervention to promote gender equity, which was adapted from a successful program in Brazil, was piloted with young men in Mumbai. Compared to baseline, intervention participants decreased their support for inequitable gender norms, reported less sexual harassment, and had trends toward less risky behaviors. A larger study to test the impact of the intervention is now ongoing.
Families can play an important role in youth's decision-making about getting tested for HIV. To encourage youth to seek voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) and ensure that they receive follow-up care, program managers should implement communication strategies that promote discussion about VCT within families and strengthen referral systems to better link HIV-positive youth with care services.
This report presents findings of a study that assessed the impact of participation in an adult mentorship program on the psychosocial well-being of youth living in Rwanda and of the adult mentors.
In 1998, the South African Ministry of Education mandated that a comprehensive life skills education program be implemented in all secondary schools by 2005. This report presents findings from a study that measured the effects of exposure to topics covered in the life skills curriculum on sexual and reproductive health knowledge and behaviors among youth.
Disclaimer: The information provided on this web site is not official U.S. Government information and does not represent the views or positions of the U.S. Agency for International Development, the U.S. Government or The Johns Hopkins University.
