Health seeking behavior: Q-structures of rural and urban women in India with sexually transmitted diseases and reproductive tract infections

I use a gender framework to examine why women need to utilize social networ k to discover and resolve problems related to reproductive tract infections (RTI) and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). In India, women's health i s linked with social status and perception of their hearth needs. This pape r provides insight on how social networks are gender-, location-, and conte xt-specific and how they are linked to STD issues. This piper examines why social network are integral to women. The health-seeking behavior of rural and urban casual sex workers is examined via Q-analysis, a language of mapp ing relationships. Results from Q-analysis reveal women's use of four sytem s - kinship belief, traditional medical, and western medical services. Fina lly, I conclude with important implications for research on gender relation s and social networks.