ABSTRACT
In broad terms defensive responses, either formal or informal, can be characterized by a distinctive orientation towards HIV/AIDS and to the social repercussions of being infected by HIV. Fundamentally, this involves the assumption that HIV/AIDS poses exceptional human difficulties for the organization, in particular, that employees or clients who carry the virus will, sooner or later, generate problems that will adversely affect organizational performance. These ‘problems’ can include the fear of cross infection through workplace activity, concern about indirect social disruption caused by the anxiety and prejudice of others, and the consequences of prolonged absence or impaired capacity and associated sickness, insurance or replacement costs.
