PERCEIVED FAMILY MEMBER REACTION TO WOMENS DISCLOSURE OF HIV-POSITIVEINFORMATION

Disclosing one's HIV status to family members is a difficult process, particularly if the anticipated reaction of the recipient is negative. The purpose of this study was to expand the understanding of reaction s experienced by women who disclosed their HIV-positive status to fami ly members. One hundred and seventy-three reactions were extracted fro m 97 disclosive episodes during ethnographic interviews with 13 adult HIV-positive women. Using constant comparison methods, reactions were placed in 31 typologies and 6 categories. Each of these categories are described and implications for therapists and future researchers are discussed.