Christians’ Perceptions And Practice Of ‘Abc’ Strategy In The Context Of New Hiv Infections In Kiambu County - Kenya

ABSTRACT

Despite the several interventions to prevent the Human Immuno-deficiency Virus (HIV) infection and Acquired Immuno-deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), new HIV infections are still on the rise. There is a general agreement that the leading cause of new HIV infections is heterosexual relationships within or outside marriage. The study sought to investigate the perceptions and practice of ABC strategy of HIV prevention among Christians in the age bracket of 19–49, by specifically seeking to investigate whether the A.I.C and Catholic theologies of abstinence and fidelity influence sexual behavior of the Christians, to evaluate Christians’ perceptions of ABC strategy of HIV prevention, to establish whether the Christians practice the ABC strategy and to explore the barriers to successful implementation of ABC among the Christians. This study’s conceptual framework was drawn from four key theories: Social Identity, Social Interactionism, Kohlberg’s theory of Cognitive Moral Development and Smith’s theory of religious effects. The study followed a cross-sectional descriptive design, employing both quantitative and qualitative approaches. Six churches were randomly selected from a list of eighteen Catholic and Africa Inland Churches (A.I.C) in Thika East Sub-county (TES). Four hundred and four (n=404) study participants were conveniently selected proportional to the population size. Data were collected using structured questionnaires, In-depth Interview Schedules and Focus Group Discussion guides. Data analysis was done with the help of Predictive Analytics Software (PASW). The findings of the study suggest that positive perception of the church’s theology on sexuality and of safe sex behavioural options may not necessarily translate into their practice. It was realized that people make moral decisions based on what adds value to the self but not on conforming to the church norms on sexuality. The study concludes that there is a need for the internalization of the values embedded in Christian moral teaching on sexuality. Thus, the study recommends an appropriate understanding of a responsible spiritual self that upholds subjective truth to the complexity of sexual relations and other relations existing within the wider, complex and changing society. It calls for a rethinking of Christian sexual ethics from an interrelational perspective that is both vertical and horizontal in dimension. In that, the relationships between the self and God as well as the other social relations are taken into account in the process of moral decision making. Further, the study calls on church leaders to open up to the era of grace and conceptualize it, then there will be a paradigm shift that will necessitate the internalization of Christian moral values. Overall, the thesis recommends an improved and comprehensive sexual health approach in inculcating and analyzing sexual values that can impact positively on the lives of persons, as we envision an AIDS-free generation.