“When the road is full of potholes, I wonder why they are bringing condoms?” Social spaces for understanding young Papua New Guineans' health-related knowledge and health-promoting action

Abstract

As in many other parts of the world, young people in Papua New Guinea (PNG) are considered particularly vulnerable to HIV infection. Young Papua New Guineans' understanding of health and HIV form the basis of their interactions with HIV-prevention programmes, yet literature documenting their views is limited. Participatory research was conducted with 31 youth in two different settings in the Highlands of PNG to analyse their perceptions of factors influencing young people's health in a local context. The participants perceived social and structural factors to have a dominant influence on their health outcomes, in contrast to prevention programmes' focus on individuals. Youth perceived HIV to be less pressing than other everyday health concerns not currently addressed by national programmes, with their resultant frustration undermining the potential of existing HIV-prevention interventions.

The young participants' experience of the social spaces developed through Photovoice, the research approach used, demonstrates the potential and limitations of participatory initiatives to support young people's actions to reduce their vulnerability to poor health outcomes. Findings point to the importance of youth-focused intervention programmes engaging influential adults in a community, and supporting “in-between” spaces where young people and community leaders can connect in order to affect the health-related contexts in which young people live.

Keywords:

• youth
• HIV
• Papua New Guinea
• Photovoice
• participation
• social spaces

Acknowledgements

With great thanks to Cathy Campbell and Flora Cornish, and the paper's two anonymous reviewers. Special thanks also to members of the Kanaka Youth Group, staff and volunteers with the Save the Children (PNG) Youth Outreach Programme, Goroka-based friends and colleagues (particularly Rachael Hinton and Peter Raynes) and AusAID in PNG. Support to the author from the General Sir John Monash Foundation (Australia), the Overseas Research Students Award Scheme (UK) and a London School of Economics Research Studentship made this research possible.

The LSE Research Ethics Committee, the Research Advisory Committee of the PNG National AIDS Council and the PNG Medical Research Advisory Council gave ethical clearance and approval for this study. All participants are referred to by pseudonyms in this paper.