An initiative to minimize the social restriction exposed by individuals living with HIV/AIDS: The impact of the vocational education program for HIV/AIDS on the attitudes of students in the Faculty of Sports Sciences at Istanbul University, Cerrahpaşa Faculty

This research is an interventional study designed within the scope of the preliminary and final testing model, single-group which does not include a control group, for the purpose of examining the impact of the vocational education program on HIV/AIDS applied to third-year Sports Management and Coaching Department students studying at Istanbul University Cerrahpasa Faculty of Sports Sciences. Since the education has been suspended in universities due to the COVİD 19 pandemic, some changes have been made to the research design. For this reason, distance learning and questionnaires were carried out with fewer students than originally intended. The process was carried out with 24 participants who scored 42 points or higher from the AIDS Attitude Scale (ASS) and its subscales applied within the scope of the preliminary test and accepted the vocational education program and the final test. Three online vocational education sessions, consisting of 30 minutes, were held with these participants. After the completion of the educational phase, the AIDS Attitude Scale (ASS) was performed for the final test with these participants. Data analysis was performed with SPSS 25 program, and non-parametric analysis tests were used because the sample was below 30. Mann Whitney U test was used to compare two independent groups and Wilcoxon Marked Rows test was used to compare two dependent groups. In the analysis, the value of p<0.05 was considered statistically significant. As a result of the data analysis, there was a statistically significant difference between the total scores of Fear of Transmission, Negative Emotions, Professional Resistance and AIDS Attitude Scale before and after education (p<0.05). When the findings were analyzed, it was established that the pre-test averages were higher than the post test averages in the total scores of Fear of Transmission, Negative Emotions, Professional Resistance and AIDS Attitude Scale. In this study light of these findings, it was ascertained that the vocational education program changed the current attitudes of students studying in the Faculty of Sports Sciences and decreased the current negative attitude towards people living with HIV/AIDS by reducing the scores obtained from the AIDS Attitude Scale and its subscales.In this respect, it has been suggested to include vocational education programs in undergraduate programs by emphasizing the importance of expanding vocational education programs in university undergraduate programs in the elimination of existing negative attitudes and social restriction towards individuals living with HIV/AIDS.