Creating a developmental AIDS Research Center focused on improving the measurement of and response to stigma and structural determinants in the HIV response

Project Summary/Abstract The overarching goal of these proposed aims is to form the Johns Hopkins-Emory-developmental AIDS research center (JH-E-dARC) focused on improving the measurement of stigma and interventions focused on responding to stigma as a threat to both mental health and suboptimal individual and population-level HIV outcomes in the US and around the world. In response, with the JH-E-dARC we aim to build capacity among emerging and established investigators globally to study public health responses to stigma. The JH-E-dARC is proposed as a partnership across the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health and the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University, building on more than a decade of partnership in stigma and HIV research funded by the NIMH, NINR, NIAID, USAID, CDC, amfAR, and MAC AIDS Foundation. The specific aims for the JH-E-dARC are: Aim 1. Build local and global capacity to measure and respond to stigma as a risk for both suboptimal mental health and HIV outcomes (Administrative Core) The Administrative core (AC) will support center research coordination and output through efficient and effective management structures, sharing of methodological resources, and support for dissemination. The AC will provide consultative support on grant applications as well as support IRB applications through review and tracking approvals. In addition, the AC will develop and maintain the public website for the ARC to communicate the overarching scientific aims and the individual studies, disseminate results, and provide a hub of resources for stigma measurement and intervention methodology. Aim 2 Improve the measurement of stigma to better study the impact of attribute-specific and intersectional stigmas on mental health and HIV (Research Core 1) The stigma measurement core will support creating rigorous assessment strategies incorporating quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods for collecting data to analyze relationships between stigma and mental health outcomes, including depression, anxiety, and dependency and HIV outcomes in epidemiologic and interventional studies. Aim 3 Increase the quantity and quality of interventions addressing stigma and structural determinants of risk in the domestic and global HIV response (Research Core 2) This intervention core will provide guidance on design of structural and multilevel stigma interventions and research to study those interventions, including explanatory and pragmatic experimental designs, quasi- experimental, and observational studies. Aim 4 Support the proliferation of science in measuring and responding to stigma and structural determinants of HIV among diverse emerging scientists (Developmental Core) The development core will support capacity development of emerging and established investigators by providing expert research development support, dedicated mentorship, taking an individualized approach to capacity building across partners, and by creating knowledge-sharing pathways across the center and beyond.