CONSISTENCY IN SELF-REPORTS OF HIV TESTING - LONGITUDINAL FINDINGS FROM THE NATIONAL AIDS BEHAVIORAL SURVEYS

THIS PAPER ASSESSES consistency in self-reports of human immunodeficie ncy virus testing using two waves of longitudinal data from a large, n ational probability survey, the National AIDS Behavioral Survey. Of th ose reporting at Wave I that they had been tested for reasons other th an blood donation, 18 percent reported at Wave 2 that they had never b een tested. Of those reporting at Wave 1 that they had been tested whe n they donated blood, 29 percent reported at Wave 2 that they had neve r been tested. Inconsistent responses may be due to poor recall and to high self-presentation bias, that is, a desire to provide socially ac ceptable answers. Poor recall may be exacerbated by passive conditions such as blood donation. The authors conclude with recommendations for reducing measurement error in surveys of testing behavior.