PSYCHOLOGICAL INTERVENTIONS TO PREVENT HIV-INFECTION ARE URGENTLY NEEDED - NEW PRIORITIES FOR BEHAVIORAL-RESEARCH IN THE 2ND DECADE OF AIDS

Behavior change remains the only means for primary prevention of HIV d isease. Psychology should take a leading role in efforts to curtail th e epidemic, but has not contributed to HIV prevention at a level propo rtionate to the urgency of the crisis. The authors propose an updated agenda for behavioral research on AIDS-HIV prevention implementing acc elerated community trials of promising behavior change models, conduct ing trials of community-level interventions on a large scale and focus ed on populations most vulnerable to HIV infections, establishing part nerships between HIV research and community service organizations, int egrating efforts from across psychology disciplines to advance and ref ine HIV prevention interventions, and mobilizing interdisciplinary HIV prevention resources and communication mechanisms to rapidly translat e research findings to community and public policy arenas.