HIV/AIDS in the context of culture: selection of ethnocultural communities for study in Canada.

This article reports on the methodology used to select six ethnocultural communities invited to participate in subsequent phases of the project on HIV/AIDS in the context of culture in Canada. Selection was based on quantitative data on demography, qualitative assessment of ethnocultural cohesion; and quantitative data and qualitative data of exposure to risk for sexually transmitted disease. A principle of partnership insured that the final selection was completed by interaction between the investigators and the National Advisory Committee representing ethnocultural communities in Canada. The six communities asked to participate in Phase II of the study were: in Montreal, the Latin American and the Arabic-speaking communities; in Toronto, the English-speaking Caribbean communities and communities from the Horn of Africa; in Vancouver, the Chinese and the South Asian communities. The results are significant for the future both of research on ethnicity in Canada and of control of HIV and AIDS.