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Examining the Associations Between Immigration Status and Perceived Stress Among HIV-Infected and Uninfected Women

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A Correction to this article was published on 18 July 2018

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Abstract

Stress is associated with poor mental and physical health outcomes. In the United States (U.S.), little is known about perceived stress and associated factors among HIV-infected and immigrant women. Here, we examine these associations within a sample of 305 HIV-infected and uninfected, U.S.-born and non-U.S.-born women who were part of the Women’s Interagency HIV Study (WIHS) at three sites (New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles). Perceived stress was measured using the 10-item Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10); HIV infection was serologically confirmed, and nativity status was self-reported. Bivariate and multivariable logistic regression were used to identify associations with perceived stress. The majority of participants were U.S.-born (232, 76.1%) and were HIV-infected (212, 68.5%). Mutlivariable analyses found the odds of perceived stress to be lower for those employed [adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 0.31, 95% confidence interval (CI) = (0.15–0.63)], with high levels of social support (AOR = 0.45, 95% CI 0.26–0.79), and HIV-infected (AOR = 0.44, 95% CI 0.24–0.79). Perceived stress was positively associated with living in unstable housing (AOR = 2.54, 95% CI 1.17–5.51). Here, immigration status was not associated with perceived stress. We identified stress to be higher among women who were unemployed, unstably housed, or who had low social support. Community-based programs should tailor interventions to include stress reduction strategies for participants with identified risk factors to improve mental and physical health outcomes.

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  • 18 July 2018

    The original version of this article unfortunately published with the incorrect article title.

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Acknowledgements

Data in this manuscript were collected by the Women’s Interagency HIV Study (WIHS). The contents of this publication are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). WIHS (Principal Investigators): Brooklyn WIHS (Howard Minkoff and Deborah Gustafson), U01-AI-031834; Chicago WIHS (Mardge Cohen and Audrey French), U01-AI-034993; WIHS Data Management and Analysis Center (Stephen Gange and Elizabeth Golub), U01-AI-042590; Southern California WIHS (Joel Milam), U01-HD-032632 (WIHS I–WIHS IV). The WIHS is funded primarily by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), with additional co-funding from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), the National Cancer Institute (NCI), the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), and the National Institute on Mental Health (NIMH). Targeted supplemental funding for specific projects is also provided by the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR), the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), the National Institute on Deafness and other Communication Disorders (NIDCD), and the NIH Office of Research on Women’s Health. WIHS data collection is also supported by UL1-TR000004 (UCSF CTSA), UL1-TR000454 (Atlanta CTSA), and P30-AI-050410 (UNC CFAR).

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The contents of this publication are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pharmacy Administration and Public Health, St. John’s University, 8000 Utopia Parkway, Queens, NY, 11439, USA

    Yolene Gousse

  2. Department of Community Health Sciences, School of Public Health, SUNY Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY, 11203, USA

    Yolene Gousse, Denise Bruno & Aimee Afable

  3. Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, SUNY Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY, 11203, USA

    Michael A. Joseph

  4. Department of Occupational Medicine, Epidemiology and Prevention (OMEP), Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, Great Neck, NY, 11021, USA

    Rebecca M. Schwartz

  5. Cook County Health and Hospitals System, Hektoen Institute of Medicine, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA

    Kathleen M. Weber

  6. STAR Program, Department of Medicine, SUNY Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY, USA

    Yolene Gousse

  7. Departments of Medicine, Stroger Hospital and Rush University, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA

    Mardge H. Cohen

  8. Institute for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Research, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, 90032, USA

    Joel Milam

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  1. Yolene Gousse
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The original version of this article was revised: The correct title has been updated in this version.

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Gousse, Y., Bruno, D., Joseph, M.A. et al. Examining the Associations Between Immigration Status and Perceived Stress Among HIV-Infected and Uninfected Women. J Community Health 43, 1172–1181 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-018-0537-6

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