Health-promoting behaviors of rural adolescent women

Problem-Solving Appraisal and Human Adjustment

This article reviews and synthesizes more than 120 studies from 20 years (1982-2002) of research that has examined problem-solving appraisal as measured by the Problem Solving Inventory (PSI). The goals of the article are fourfold: (a) introduce the construct of problem-solving appraisal and the PSI within the applied problem-solving literature, (b) summarize and integrate existing findings using the PSI within and across four major content areas (psychological adjustment, physical health, coping, and educational and vocational issues), (c) identify promising research directions that might stimulate future research and promote theory development, and (d) identify implications for practitioners in the helping professions. We conclude that problem-solving appraisal as measured by the PSI is a useful psychological construct with implications for theory and many applications to build on peoples' strengths to enhance their life satisfaction and well-being.

A population-based study of health-promoting behaviors and their predictors in Iranian women of reproductive age

Health-promoting behaviors have been recognized as major factors for maintenance and improvement of health. The objective of this study was to determine the status of health-promoting behaviors and their predicting factors in Iranian women of reproductive age. This was a population-based cross-sectional study in which 1359 Iranian women of reproductive age were selected by proportional random multistage cluster sampling in Tehran. Questionnaires including sociodemographic characteristics, Health-Promoting Lifestyle Profile-II (HPLP-II) and Personal Resource Questionnaire 85-Part 2 (PRQ85-Part 2) were completed by interview. The association between the dependent variables (HPLP-II and subscales) and the independent variables (social support and sociodemographic characteristics) was analyzed using the multivariable linear regression model. Among the six dimensions of health-promoting behaviors, women scored highest in interpersonal relations (3.08 ± 0.51) and lowest in physical activity (2.04 ± 0.64). The Pearson test indicated perceived social support to be significantly correlated with HPLP-II (r = 0.53; p < 0.001) and all its subscales (r = 0.12-0.60; p < 0.001). Multivariable regression analysis indicated social support to be a predictor of HPLP-II and all its subscales, except for physical activity. Social support and sociodemographic characteristics accounted for 29.8% of the variance in the HPLP-II score and 6.9-39.3 in the six subscales. The findings of the present study confirm the importance of social support and modifiable variables (sociodemographic) in the occurrence of health-promoting behaviors in women and accredit the theoretical relationships among the concepts of the health-promotion model.

Evaluation of a school-based health promotion programme for adolescents aged 12–15 years with focus on well-being related to stress

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to evaluate a school-based adolescent health promotion programme with focus on well-being related to stress.

STUDY DESIGN

Interventional and evaluative with tests before and after the intervention. The study was performed in two secondary schools in a town on the west coast of Sweden.

METHODS

A health promotion programme comprising massage and mental training was implemented for a single academic year in one school (intervention school, 153 participants) in order to strengthen and maintain well-being. No intervention was implemented in the other school (non-intervention school, 287 participants). A questionnaire was developed and tested, resulting in 23 items distributed across the following six areas: self-reliance; leisure time; being an outsider; general and home satisfaction; school satisfaction; and school environment.

RESULTS

A pre- and postintervention comparison of the six areas was made within each school. In the intervention school, the boys maintained a very good or good sense of well-being related to stress in all six areas, while the girls' sense of well-being was maintained in five areas and deteriorated in one area. In the non-intervention school, the boys maintained a very good or good sense of well-being related to stress in four areas and deteriorated in two areas, while the girls' sense of well-being was maintained in two areas and deteriorated in four areas.

CONCLUSION

Massage and mental training helped to maintain adolescents' very good or good sense of well-being related to stress. A questionnaire with acceptable validity and reliability was developed and tested in order to evaluate the health promotional approach. However, there is a need for further study to develop both the intervention and the questionnaire for young people.

The family as a protective asset in adolescent development

Adolescents are considered at high risk for engaging in such negative health behaviors as drug and alcohol use, unprotected sexual intercourse, and violence. Conventional wisdom has long upheld the belief that the peer group exerts the strongest influence on adolescent behavior. However, recent research has shown that in fact the family remains a strong factor in moderating teen risk behavior. Holistic nursing acknowledges the crucial relationship between environment and health; the environment is composed of everything that surrounds the individual, which by definition includes the family. The purpose of this article is to examine the evidence supporting the concept of the family as a protective external asset in adolescent development, to explore the way the family helps defend young people from risk, and to review briefly the implications for nursing research, practice, advocacy, and education.