Mental representations of HPV in Appalachia: Gender, semantic network analysis, and knowledge gaps

Media coverage has emphasized human papillomavirus (HPV) as a vaccine-preventable, sexually transmitted virus causing cervical cancer. Appalachian undergraduate students (N = 309, 50% female) were surveyed on their knowledge of HPV; analyses of mental representations were similar to content analyses...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inJournal of health psychology Vol. 17; no. 6; pp. 917 - 928
Main Authors Smith, Rachel A., Parrott, Roxanne L.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published London, England SAGE Publications 01.09.2012
Subjects
Appalachian Region - epidemiology
Cancer
Cervical cancer
Content analysis
Coverage
Cultivation
Diseases
Female
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
Human papillomavirus
Human papillomaviruses
Humans
Linkage analysis
Male
Mass Media
Media
Media (culture)
Mental representation
Papillomavirus Infections - prevention & control
Papillomavirus Infections - psychology
Papillomavirus Infections - transmission
Papillomavirus Vaccines - therapeutic use
Prevention
Public health
Semantic networks
Semantics
Sexual health
Stigma
Stigmatization
Students
Uterine Cervical Neoplasms - prevention & control
Uterine Cervical Neoplasms - psychology
Vaccination
Vaccines
Young Adult
Appalachian Region
belief systems
media coverage
stigma
semantic network analysis
human papillomavirus
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Summary:Media coverage has emphasized human papillomavirus (HPV) as a vaccine-preventable, sexually transmitted virus causing cervical cancer. Appalachian undergraduate students (N = 309, 50% female) were surveyed on their knowledge of HPV; analyses of mental representations were similar to content analyses of media coverage of HPV, suggesting media cultivation. Semantic network analysis revealed linkages between vaccine, disease causation and prevention, women’s centrality in the representations, and structural differences that varied between vaccinated women, unvaccinated women, and men. The findings provided insights into gaps in the public’s understanding of HPV, potential stigmatization of those testing HPV+, and future challenges in vaccinating men.
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Author's note: Rachel A. Smith (PhD, Michigan State University) is an Associate Professor and Roxanne Parrott (PhD, University of Arizona) is a Professor in the Department of Communication Arts and Sciences at The Pennsylvania State University.
ISSN:1359-1053
1461-7277
DOI:10.1177/1359105311428534