ABSTRACT
It is a truism to say that the fear inspired by AIDS does not directly lead to preventive behaviour. Numerous KABP (Knowledge, Attitudes, Beliefs and Practices) studies have established no direct link between information and action (Peruga and Celentano, 1993). Many of these studies have been largely inspired by the Health Belief Model (Rosenstock, 1974), which has been widely criticised (e.g. Bloor, 1995a, 1995b; Fee and Krieger, 1993) and alternative approaches have been proposed. Instead of trying to impose preconceived models onto knowledge and practice, phenomenological approaches, which study how people integrate the threat of AIDS and what they actually do about it, should be adopted.
