The NEXUS Portal provides an in-depth profile of the research and achievements of NEXUS on a quarterly basis.

The NEXUS Portal provides an in-depth profile of the research and achievements of NEXUS on a quarterly basis.

The NEXUS Portal provides an in-depth profile of the research and achievements of NEXUS on a quarterly basis.

The NEXUS Portal provides an in-depth profile of the research and achievements of NEXUS on a quarterly basis.

Previous research studies which have used Health Belief Model (I-IBM) dimensions in order to understand health outcomes have many problems which prevent clear and reliable conclusions about their results. Studies about diabetes-related health beliefs have proved to be no exception to this rule. The research presented here is an attempt to address some of these problems which include the lack of satisfactory scales to measure diabetes-related health beliefs, the use of heterogeneous samples of patients with different disease and regimen types, and the lack of prospective studies in which health beliefs are used to predict outcomes in the future. Another major problem which applies to all HBM research is that the relationships between the various dimensions of the model have not been determined. As such, the HBM is not a model at all but a catalogue of variables. The present research aimed to specify the relationships between the components of the HBM and attempted to integrate self-efficacy and locus of control beliefs in order to extend the model and improve the amount of outcome variance explained. Scales to measure diabetes-specific health beliefs were developed from the responses of 187 tablet-treated outpatients with Type II diabetes. Health beliefs were examined, on the one hand, in relation to other psychological and behavioural variables, and on the other, for their sensitivity to change after educational and treatment interventions. Both cross-sectional and longitudinal study designs were employed. The relationships between the HBM components themselves were explored in a linear and non-linear fashion.

This thesis explores parental health behaviours in order to develop a questionnaire which will measure the health behaviours of parents. It does so in a triangulated study by using a combination of qualitative and quantitative research methods. The aims of the qualitative study were to explore parents’ concepts of health and the health behaviours they initiate for their preschool aged children and examine the relationship between parents’ health concepts and the health behaviours they undertake for their children. The aims of the quantitative study were that the health concepts of wellness, health promotion and illness prevention, identified by these parents, were measured. In line with the major research aims of the second quantitative study the emerging theory from the inductive exploration of parents’ health and their health behaviour and the health literature formed the basis for the construction of a questionnaire which contained health domains of wellness, health promotion and illness prevention and their clusters / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Self-regulation is a highly adaptive process that enables goal-directed behaviour; however, individuals often fail to self-regulate successfully. Failures of self-regulation in the domain of health may be particularly harmful especially for those with chronic diseases. The Energy Model articulated by Baumeister and colleagues proposes that all acts of self-regulation rely on a single, finite energy resource. Thus, one possible explanation for self-regulation failure is insufficient energy. In the current research, four studies examine the relationship between the construct of energy, which can manifest in state or trait form, and self-regulatory success. Past research has demonstrated that individuals who perform two sequential tasks requiring self-regulation perform worse on the second task (the self-regulatory fatigue effect). The Energy Model proposes that this performance decrement can be explained by energy depletion. If this is true, then state energy should mediate the self-regulatory fatigue effect. A series of three experimental studies (studies 1-3) were designed to test this hypothesis. In Study 1, participants were randomly assigned to a gaze regulation task or to a no-regulation control group (as in Schmeichel et. al, 2003) before they watched a brief video clip. Following this first task, all participants worked on a second self-regulatory task (solving anagrams). Persistence and performance on this second task were the dependent measures and energy was measured before and after the initial video task. Contrary to the predictions of the Energy Model, the self-regulatory fatigue effect was not replicated in this study and so the mediating potential of energy could not be tested. However, ratings of task difficulty and effort suggested that individuals in the gaze regulation condition did not find this task to be very challenging. Accordingly, a second study was designed that added an additional level of self-regulatory demand by asking participants to rehearse a 7-digit number during the video clip (memory regulation). When this was crossed with the gaze regulation manipulation, four conditions were created: no regulation, gaze regulation only, memory regulation only and memory + gaze regulation. Study 2 then followed the same approximate procedure as Study 1, with individuals randomly assigned to one of the four conditions. The results of this study were consistent with Study 1 in that the self-regulatory fatigue effect was not replicated. However, the manipulation check suggested that some of the participants in the gaze regulation conditions may not have adhered to experimental instructions and the conditions may have differed in the degree to which they were enjoyable and interesting to participants. Accordingly, a third study used an eye-tracker to assess self-regulation during the video task and evaluated aspects of task engagement. Study 3 followed the same procedures as Study 2. Eye-tracker data verified significant differences between the groups in terms of self-regulation during the initial video task; however, there were no other significant between group differences. Taken together, these 3 studies indicate that the self-regulatory fatigue effect may be less robust than previous research would suggest. An unexpected finding was the high degree of variability in the energy measures, which implied that individual differences in energy may be important to consider. Accordingly, Study 4 prospectively examined the role of dispositional energy in the self-regulation of diet and exercise behaviour by testing whether energy moderated intention-behaviour concordance in a sample of individuals newly diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. This study demonstrated that energy predicted future exercise behaviour in this sample and provided some preliminary support for the hypothesis that individuals with higher levels of dispositional energy may show more intention-behaviour concordance than those with lower levels of dispositional energy. Overall, these 4 studies provide some tentative support for the role of dispositional energy in the implementation of health behaviour, but do not support the Energy Models predictions regarding self-regulatory fatigue.

Self-regulation is a highly adaptive process that enables goal-directed behaviour; however, individuals often fail to self-regulate successfully. Failures of self-regulation in the domain of health may be particularly harmful especially for those with chronic diseases. The Energy Model articulated by Baumeister and colleagues proposes that all acts of self-regulation rely on a single, finite energy resource. Thus, one possible explanation for self-regulation failure is insufficient energy. In the current research, four studies examine the relationship between the construct of energy, which can manifest in state or trait form, and self-regulatory success. Past research has demonstrated that individuals who perform two sequential tasks requiring self-regulation perform worse on the second task (the self-regulatory fatigue effect). The Energy Model proposes that this performance decrement can be explained by energy depletion. If this is true, then state energy should mediate the self-regulatory fatigue effect. A series of three experimental studies (studies 1-3) were designed to test this hypothesis. In Study 1, participants were randomly assigned to a gaze regulation task or to a no-regulation control group (as in Schmeichel et. al, 2003) before they watched a brief video clip. Following this first task, all participants worked on a second self-regulatory task (solving anagrams). Persistence and performance on this second task were the dependent measures and energy was measured before and after the initial video task. Contrary to the predictions of the Energy Model, the self-regulatory fatigue effect was not replicated in this study and so the mediating potential of energy could not be tested. However, ratings of task difficulty and effort suggested that individuals in the gaze regulation condition did not find this task to be very challenging. Accordingly, a second study was designed that added an additional level of self-regulatory demand by asking participants to rehearse a 7-digit number during the video clip (memory regulation). When this was crossed with the gaze regulation manipulation, four conditions were created: no regulation, gaze regulation only, memory regulation only and memory + gaze regulation. Study 2 then followed the same approximate procedure as Study 1, with individuals randomly assigned to one of the four conditions. The results of this study were consistent with Study 1 in that the self-regulatory fatigue effect was not replicated. However, the manipulation check suggested that some of the participants in the gaze regulation conditions may not have adhered to experimental instructions and the conditions may have differed in the degree to which they were enjoyable and interesting to participants. Accordingly, a third study used an eye-tracker to assess self-regulation during the video task and evaluated aspects of task engagement. Study 3 followed the same procedures as Study 2. Eye-tracker data verified significant differences between the groups in terms of self-regulation during the initial video task; however, there were no other significant between group differences. Taken together, these 3 studies indicate that the self-regulatory fatigue effect may be less robust than previous research would suggest. An unexpected finding was the high degree of variability in the energy measures, which implied that individual differences in energy may be important to consider. Accordingly, Study 4 prospectively examined the role of dispositional energy in the self-regulation of diet and exercise behaviour by testing whether energy moderated intention-behaviour concordance in a sample of individuals newly diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. This study demonstrated that energy predicted future exercise behaviour in this sample and provided some preliminary support for the hypothesis that individuals with higher levels of dispositional energy may show more intention-behaviour concordance than those with lower levels of dispositional energy. Overall, these 4 studies provide some tentative support for the role of dispositional energy in the implementation of health behaviour, but do not support the Energy Models predictions regarding self-regulatory fatigue.

The NEXUS Portal provides an in-depth profile of the research and achievements of NEXUS on a quarterly basis. This special issue is dedicated to youth health.

Contexte : Les maladies cardiovasculaires dont l'angine et l'infarctus sont un fléau grandissant pour les Canadiens. En 2008, les femmes canadiennes sont 16% plus susceptibles de succomber à un infarctus que les hommes. Pour améliorer la qualité de vie des patients souffrant d'angine ou d'infarctus, la perfusion transluminale per cutanée (PTCA) s'avère le traitement de choix. Suite à celle-ci, il est recommandé d'effectuer des modifications d'habitudes de vie. Cependant, les femmes cardiaques devant modifier leurs habitudes de vie ont une perception de la maladie différente des hommes mais les caractéristiques présentes lors de changement d'habitude de vie ne sont pas connues. Le nouveau contexte de la PTCA n'est pas adapté à cette population grandissante. Objectif: Décrire les caractéristiques présentes lors d'un changement dans le processus de modification de comportements à risque des femmes ayant subi une PTCA. Méthodologie : Cette étude descriptive. L'échantillon non probabiliste de convenance est composé de 22 femmes (X= 65.4 ans) ayant subi une PTCA au CHUS-Fleurimont. Toutes les participantes complétaient le même questionnaire à 1- 2 semaines (Tl) et à 4 mois post-PTCA (T2) lors d'une rencontre à leur domicile. Les questions évaluaient les trois habitudes de vie en lien avec l'alimentation, l'activité physique et le tabagisme ainsi que les principales caractéristiques pouvant être présentes lors d'une modification de comportement à risque (soutien des proches, perception de la maladie, fatigue, dépression, stress, optimisme, variables sociodémographiques, facilitants et barrières perçues par les participantes). Des statistiques descriptives ont été réalisées. Des tests non paramétriques (a = 0.05) ont été faits pour comparer les participantes entre le Tl et le T2 (Wilcoxon) puis des sous-groupes de celles-ci en fonction de leur motivation à modifier leurs comportements à risque à T2 (Mann-Withney et Krustall-Wallis). Les données qualitatives ont été regroupées par catégorie à l'aide d'une analyse de contenu. Résultats : Les femmes de l'étude identifient plus de symptômes de la maladie, sont plus fatiguées (p=0.01) et plus stressées (p=0.04) au Tl (p=0.000) qu'au T2. Celles-ci perçoivent leur maladie cardiaque comme chronique (p=0.006) et ont une meilleure compréhension de celle-ci (p=0.007) 4 mois suivant la PTCA. Le soutien des professionnels de la santé ainsi que les programmes de réadaptation cardiaque sont perçus comme des facilitants à la modification de comportement au même titre que celui de la famille et des amis. Les symptômes physiques (douleurs aux jambes, au dos, etc.) et les symptômes dépressifs sont identifiés comme des barrières à la modification de comportement. Conclusion : Cette étude a permis de faire ressortir certaines caractéristiques présentes tant en post-PTCA que lors d'un changement dans le processus de modification de comportement. D'autres études doivent cependant être conduite afin de valider ces caractéristiques auprès d'un plus grand échantillon et ainsi pouvoir proposer des interventions infirmières d'enseignements solides et structurés à partir de solides assises sur les caractéristiques associées aux femmes ayant subi une PTCA.