Factors influencing participation in weekly support groups among women completing an HIV/STD intervention program

Over the past three decades, the influence and importance of social support has been well documented and the findings have suggested a beneficial effe ct on stress-related situations, mental and physical health, and social fun ctioning. More recently, smalt group/skills training behavioral interventio ns have demonstrated success in changing behaviors which affect the transmi ssion of sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV among populations at risk for these diseases. Studies of support groups to date have been conduc ted exclusively in research settings where women are offered financial ince ntives for participation. Little is known about the willingness of women to participate in ongoing support groups after successfully completing a skil ls training intervention. The present study examines the factors that may i nfluence participation among women in a weekly support soup after completin g a structured, six session HIV/STD intervention. Both quantitative and qua litative data are collected from 265 women in the intervention arm of a mul ti-site randomized controlled behavioral intervention trial. Results reveal that less than a quarter (22%) of women participated in at least one suppo rt group. Participation varied significantly by site, ranging from 34% to 1 5% (p = .008). Participation was also strongly linked to recent use of dome stic violence services. Qualitative data indicated that although monetary i ncentives play some role in the woman's decision to participate, other fact ors are also important. These include program outreach, support soup size, salience of the soup content, consistency of group leadership from the inte rvention to the support group, and use of peer lenders along with professio nal facilitators. Implications for design of post-intervention support grou ps programs an discussed.