HIV incidence has shifted racially and geographically in the United States and now represents higher proportions of African Americans living in the Rural South. Lower levels of HIV knowledge may be the culprit behind the increasing HIV rates observed in the Rural South. The purpose of this study was to investigate the individual and joint correlates of HIV knowledge in a sample of rural African Americans. Baseline data from a faith-based anti-stigma intervention (Project FAITHH, N= 210) was used to assess associations between sociodemographic characteristics, spirituality, stigma, and HIV knowledge scores. Associations were examined with recursive partitioning. Statistical significance was determined at P< 0.05 with a two-sided test. Recursive partitioning revealed five distinct groups based on the data. HIV knowledge scores were highest among participants who attended some college (P < 0.001) with lower levels of individual stigma (P < 0.001). HIV knowledge scores were lowest among less educated individuals (P < 0.001) who had lower levels of perceived community stigma (P = 0.002). Future interventions designed to improve HIV knowledge in rural African Americans should consider tailoring content to those who have the greatest deficits in HIV knowledge, which may be based on perceived community stigma and education levels.
Keywords: African Americans; HIV knowledge; religion; rural; spirituality; stigma.