Consumer Behaviour - Psi India

• Answer 1

Yes, PSI India should change its communication strategy to mass-media campaigns as HIV had clearly reached a status of a worldwide epidemic without a medical treatment for the virus and numbers threating to rise at an alarming rate. Especially in India where spread can boost affected population cases to double the current size of effected population and moreover the Indian attitude does not allow an open discussion on these issues and are mostly in a habit of considering  this as social taboo which only occurs in sadistic societies/drowning societies. The usual focus of PSI was on sex-workers through IPCs which build a network to communicate within the area confined area as this approach was effective and had built more trust among the sex workers, on the other hand it was time consuming process and with 11 ports to target at once would require humongous network, skilled and trained IPCs to do the job.

PSI found out that in their interactions with sex workers and research that it’s the people who visit the red-light areas are also spreading the disease to their native places and probably to their future generations and PSI with their current IPC strategy will not be able to target these men. Also, they will not be able to change their attitude towards “safe-sex” which is the key to contain the epidemic. Not only the epidemic is fatal, it creates a social holocaust for the effected victim which often adds to pressure of the victim.

The operation lighthouse which targets 11 ports in the southern part of the country had clear objectives (Objective 5: Table A in the case) to increase the street talk about the disease and shift the focus towards preventing the epidemic would not go along with current strategy. These ports had different groups of men which had different levels of risk of being getting affected, if PSI focuses on one group initially it may let slip the other group which may further develop higher susceptibility. The “truckers and helpers” group which is most significant by volume (exhibit 8) shows that they have higher risk than other groups would be difficult to catch-up and track the outcome for process of “one-to-one” communication used by PSI.

It will be effective, easier and time saving for PSI to use mass-media over IPCs as its communication strategy and they will be able to target the men along with changing the attitudes and behaviors towards the cause.

• Answer 2

Yes, “Balbir Pasha” will be able to create general awareness to overcome barriers for safe-sex , as people will get know how they can get effected will the disease and HIV/AIDS usually is linked to social holocaust and death of victims it will catch the eye of targeted group. The name itself is catchy and men would recognize the name easily. It should be based upon the regular activities that these men do, so that they can relate to the environment/real-life situations which being portrayed and thus creating an attitudinal change.