{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,16]],"date-time":"2026-09-16T10:51:10Z","timestamp":1789555870341,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":45,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,5,20]],"date-time":"2025-05-20T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1747699200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Public Health"],"abstract":"<jats:sec><jats:title>Background<\/jats:title><jats:p>Despite global efforts to control human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) among adolescents, the number of new infections among adolescents continues to increase. The increasingly widespread HIV epidemic among Chinese college students indicates an urgent need for more effective services in this context. To meet this need, we conducted a survey that aimed to produce a clear understanding of knowledge and sexual behavior concerning acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) among college students. This study can serve as a reference for policy-makers and university administrators seeking to implement more targeted measures in this context.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title><jats:p>In November 2024, a cross-sectional internet questionnaire survey was distributed at 13 universities in Guangzhou, China. The chi-square test was performed to examine the differences among respondents who exhibited different characteristics. A multivariate logistic regression analysis was conducted to explore the main influences on college students\u2019 AIDS knowledge. Confidence intervals that did not contain zero or <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic> values &amp;lt; 0.05 were considered to indicate statistical significance.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Results<\/jats:title><jats:p>A total of 12,632 valid questionnaires were collected. On this basis, a total of 11,587 (91.73%) students were determined to possess AIDS knowledge. The main influences on college students\u2019 AIDS knowledge were age, school classification, major, accommodation method, place of origin and average monthly living expenses. The proportion of students who reported a history of sexual behavior increased alongside students\u2019 grade. The relevant values were as follows: freshmen (5.16%), sophomores (11.9%), fourth-year and fifth-year students (15.59%), master\u2019s students (29.27%) and doctoral students (55.22%). A total of 6.63% of the respondents who had engaged in sexual behaviors reported that they had engaged in noncommercial sex with causal sexual partners. During the past year, the percentages of respondents who did not insist on using condoms during sexual activities with their casual sexual partners, male same-sex sexual partners, or commercial sexual partners were 30.58, 51.81, and 81.25%, respectively. The percentages of students who possessed AIDS knowledge and insisted on using condoms during sexual activities with \u201ccasual sexual partners (72.16%)\u201d or \u201cmale same-sex sexual partners (48.19%)\u201d were greater than the corresponding percentages of students who did not possess such knowledge (<jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\u202f&amp;lt;\u202f0.01). Individuals who did not possess AIDS knowledge reported that they did not insist on using condoms during sexual activities with male same-sex sexual partners. \u201cDid not buy a condom\u201d was identified as the main reason for the failure to use condoms during sexual activities with casual sexual partners (26.43%) and commercial sexual partners on the basis of monetary transactions (48.00%). The main reason for failing to use condoms during same-sex sexual activities was \u201cI did not think that it was necessary to use it\u201d (41.67%). The percentage of college students included in the survey who reported that they had acquired AIDS knowledge from social software was the highest (76.96%). A total of 30.90% of the respondents reported that their favorite way of acquiring AIDS knowledge was through their school courses.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title><jats:p>The level of AIDS knowledge exhibited by college students is affected by various factors. Improvements in AIDS knowledge can help raise awareness of the need for self-protection during high-risk sexual activities among college students. The risk of contracting AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases can be reduced through the use of condoms. Social networks are the main source by which college students acquire AIDS knowledge, although such students typically hope to acquire AIDS knowledge from their school courses.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fpubh.2025.1595827","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,5,20]],"date-time":"2025-05-20T10:02:59Z","timestamp":1747735379000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":5,"title":["Knowledge, attitudes and sexual behavior concerning AIDS among college students in Guangzhou, China: a cross-sectional questionnaire survey"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"13","author":[{"given":"Yanjun","family":"Yang","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Shaomin","family":"Wu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yuan","family":"Tang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,5,20]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1240","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jogc.2022.10.007","article-title":"HIV\/AIDS is not over","volume":"44","author":"Money","year":"2022","journal-title":"J Obstetr Gynaecol Canada"},{"key":"ref2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"480","DOI":"10.1016\/S0140-6736(22)01523-9","article-title":"Botswana's HIV\/AIDS success","volume":"400","author":"Thornton","year":"2022","journal-title":"Lancet"},{"key":"ref3","article-title":"Latest global and regional HIV statistics\u2014fact sheet 2024","year":"2024"},{"key":"ref4","volume-title":"World health statistics 2024: Monitoring health for the SDGs, sustainable development goals","year":"2024"},{"key":"ref5","volume-title":"Adolescent HIV prevention: In order to ramp up our efforts in the fight against AIDS, there is a need for more concentrated focus on adolescents and young people","year":"2024"},{"key":"ref6","volume-title":"HIV\/AIDS JUNPo: The path that ends AIDS: UNAIDS global AIDS update 2023","year":"2023"},{"key":"ref7","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1022","DOI":"10.46234\/ccdcw2021.249","article-title":"Research progress in the epidemiology of HIV\/AIDS in China","volume":"3","author":"He","year":"2021","journal-title":"China CDC Weekly"},{"key":"ref8","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1327","DOI":"10.13419\/j.cnki.aids.2021.12.01","article-title":"Strive for a new journey in AIDS prevention and control during the 13th five-year: review and prospect of AID Sprevention and control in China","volume":"27","author":"Han","year":"2021","journal-title":"Chin J AIDS STD"},{"key":"ref9","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1455","DOI":"10.3760\/cma.j.cn112338-20200417-00592","article-title":"Characteristies and trends of newly reported HIV infecting in young students in China, 2010-2019","volume":"41","author":"Cai","year":"2020","journal-title":"Chin J Epidemiol"},{"key":"ref10","article-title":"Questionnaire on HIV\/AIDS awareness among young students","year":""},{"key":"ref11","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1038","DOI":"10.16168\/j.cnki.issn.1002-9982.2024.11.015","article-title":"Current situation of AIDS knowledge among students in a medical college in Fujian Province and analysis of relevant policies in local area","volume":"11","author":"Zeng","year":"2024","journal-title":"Chinese J Health Educ"},{"key":"ref12","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"9","DOI":"10.3389\/fpubh.2021.804626","article-title":"HIV\/AIDS-related knowledge and attitudes among chinese college students and associated factors: across-sectional study","volume":"9","author":"Zhang","year":"2022","journal-title":"Front Public Health"},{"key":"ref13","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1310","DOI":"10.3969\/j.issn.1006-3110.2024.11.007","article-title":"Awareness rate of knowledge about AIDS and sexual behavior among university students in Hunan Province, 2022-2023","volume":"31","author":"Hu","year":"2024","journal-title":"Pract Prev Med"},{"key":"ref14","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"10","DOI":"10.3389\/fpubh.2022.892422","article-title":"Structural equation model analysis of HIV\/AIDS knowledge, attitude, and sex education among freshmen in Jiangsu, China","volume":"10","author":"Tu","year":"2022","journal-title":"Front Public Health"},{"key":"ref15","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"203","DOI":"10.16835\/j.cnki.1000-9817.2024053","article-title":"Current status of AIDS knowledge, attitudes, practices and associated factors of high-risk sexual behavior among college students in Tianjin City","volume":"45","author":"Yi","year":"2024","journal-title":"Chin J School Health"},{"key":"ref16","first-page":"1227","article-title":"General Office of the State Council of the People's Republic of China. 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