ABSTRACT
Since its original classification as a distinct set of related diseases, Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) has emerged as one of the major health problems facing the international community. Despite significant advances during recent years in the identification of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and the understanding of other physiological aspects of HIV infection, the social epidemiology of AIDS has remained relatively obscure. Most research has focused on the United States and Western Europe, with little attention to the cultural differences that may influence different patterns of HIV transmission. Even when a cross-cultural perspective has been proposed, it has generally failed to take into account the culturally constituted practices that affect the spread of HIV/AIDS (see, in particular, the discussion in Chapter 1 of this volume).
