published_or_final_version / Medical Sciences / Master / Master of Medical Sciences

Food insecurity is a global issue giving rise to health inequities affecting populations at all life stages. Postsecondary student food insecurity exists, yet is an understudied phenomenon. To provide insight into the perspectives and experiences of food insecurity in the postsecondary population, university students (n=15) who accessed a campus food bank were interviewed utilizing person-centered interviewing. The social determinants of health (SDH) and structural violence theory provided conceptual guidance for the qualitative study. Students were found to lead complex lives, shouldering many responsibilities. They valued their health; however, they lacked the necessary supports to maintain adequate nutritional intake. They employed multiple strategies to mitigate their food insecurity issues, while concurrently making sacrifices and experiencing suffering. Three economic pathways leading students to food bank use included shortfall, cumulative and catastrophic pathways. This research offers increased understanding of food insecurity in this vulnerable population, exposing inequities which must be addressed. Keywords: / xi, 304 leaves ; 29 cm

The purpose of this study was to investigate relationships between person-environment fit (P-E fit) and health behavior in residence hall students, in order to better understand the effects of an environment on health behavior. Students living in the six wellness residence halls on the campus of Ball State University were asked to participate by filling out two questionnaires as part of a health screening. Participants completed 113 University Residence Environment Scale (URES), real and ideal form, questionnaires and 210 Healthier People health risk appraisal (HRA) questionnaires. Sixty-nine complete sets of data were used in this study. Pearson r correlation coefficients for the 10 URES subscale scores, a total P-E fit score, and health risk were used to examine the relationships between P-E fit and health behavior. Correlations of statistical significance were not found. From the results of this study, a relationship between P-E fit and health behavior is not supported. Further study is recommended. / Institute for Wellness

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between student-environment fit and physical self-efficacy among female undergraduate students living in the Trane and Tichenor wellness residence halls at Ball State University. This study examined the following questions: 1) What is the degree of fit experienced by female students living in the Trane and Tichenor wellness residence halls?, and 2) Is there a relationship between student-environment fit and physical self-efficacy? Student-environment fit is necessary for a student's happiness, satisfaction, and achievement. Physical self-efficacy is an important component of positive self-concept and has been correlated with the healthy development of an individual. Data on student-environment fit was collected using the University Residence Environment Scale. The Physical Self-Efficacy Scale was used to collect data on the students' perceptions of their physical ability and self-presentation confidence. Statistical analysis of the data revealed: 1) significant t-scores for the degree of fit experienced by female students in Trane and Tichenor wellness residence halls, and 2) a significant correlation between the total student-environment fit score and the total physical self-efficacy score as well as a significant correlation for the URES subscales of Academic Achievement and Intellectuality with the total physical self-efficacy score. / Department of Home Economics

A limited amount of research has been conducted on college students' physical activity levels. According to the 1996 Surgeon General's Report, only one fourth of young adults regularly exercise vigorously. Therefore, there is a need to develop effective exercise intervention programs for young adult populations. There has been no previous research using the variables of outcome expectancy value, exercise role identity, and self-regulation skills. The purpose of the study was to describe the relationship among self-regulation skills, outcome expectancy value, and exercise role identity as predictors of exercise levels. Subjects (n=1 83) represented a convenient sample of students from Personal Health classes at Ball State University. All subjects completed a four-part questionnaire divided into: self-regulation, outcome expectancy value, exercise role identity, and seven day recall. Results revealed that selfregulation and exercise role identity were predictors of vigorous activity, but not moderate activity. Outcome expectancy value was not significantly correlated with any of the dependent variables, except for male vigorous days. This study further support self-regulation and exercise role identity as predictors of physical activity. / Department of Physiology and Health Science

The problem of this study was to determine the levels of physical activity in international college students. A non-experimental, cross-sectional survey design was used to examine the problem of the study. The participants of this study were 64 international college students enrolled in Ball State University. The 13-item instrument of this study consisted of six personal demographic questions and seven measure of physical activity in the past seven days.Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and inferential statistics. Descriptive statistics, which included frequencies and percentages, were used for demographic and physical activity questions. T-tests were used to test the differences in physical activity level between gender, classification of degree program, and academic majors. One-way ANOVAs was used to test the differences in physical activity level among different continents and among different length of stay in the U.S.The results showed that a high percentage of the participants in this study met the recommended criteria for physical activity. There were no statistically significant differences between genders, classification of degree program, academic majors, different lengths of stay in the U.S., and different continents where the international students come from. The demographic variables were not significantly associated with physical activity level of international college students. / Department of Physiology and Health Science

Nursing students have perceived stress associated with nursing education.The purpose of this descriptive correlational research was to determine if there is a relationship between lifestyle practices and stress among baccalaureate nursing students. The sample consisted of 72 junior and senior level baccalaureate nursing students, which was 69.9% of the 102 questionnaires distributed from three schools of nursing of mid-size universities in the midwest. The procedures for protection of human subjects were followed.Pender's Health Promotion Model (1996) served as the theoretical framework for this study. Healthy lifestyle was examined using Pender's Health Promotion Lifestyle Profile (HPLP). Perceived stress was measured by Cohen's Perceived Stress Scale (PSS).Findings included student's perceived stress some of the time. The mean for the PSS was 2.14. A healthy lifestyle was determined by a mean of 2.6 on the HPLP. The relationship between healthy lifestyle and perceived stress was significantly negatively correlated at a significant level (r=.4949, p=.001).The HPLP consisted of 6 subscales which measured specific components of a healthy lifestyle. Health responsibility was the first subscale. Overall, students reported never to sometimes seeking a healthcare professional to discuss health concerns or reporting unusual symptoms. Physical activity was subscale number two. Overall, one-fourth to one-third followed a planned exercise program with the same percentage reporting regular exercise. Nutrition was the third subscale. The majority of nursing students sometimes ate a healthy diet with an even larger amount never to sometimes limiting use of foods containing sugar. The fourth subscale was spiritual growth with over 40% feeling connected to some force greater than self Sub scale five was interpersonal relations. Responses to the interpersonal relations subscale indicated that students had support systems in place 80% of the time often to routinely. Stress Management was the sixth subscale of the HPLP. Almost 75% of the nursing students experienced stress and rarely participated in activities to reduce stress.Conclusions were that stress was obvious in nursing education. Stress can be reduced by components of a healthy lifestyle. Lifestyle is a controllable factor in life. Since nursing students are students of health., a healthy lifestyle should be practiced by nursing students. Eating a balanced diet, exercising, and participating in activities to reduce stress are some of the components of a healthy lifestyle.This study was significant because findings provided information about lifestyle and the relationship to perceived stress levels. Since high stress levels may reduce academic performance, and unhealthy lifestyles may increase stress, educational programs could be initiated to reduce stress and improve lifestyle behaviors. Support groups could be instituted to provide a way to support healthy lifestyle and ways to reduce stress.The study has implications for nursing students and nursing faculty. Implications include stress assessment of students and stress management education for students. Nursing faculty must educate students about possible causes of stress and provide ample ways to reduce stress by leading a healthier lifestyle. Nursing students and nursing faculty should lead a life of a health practitioner. / School of Nursing

The purpose of this study was to discover if daily physical activity affects students' academic achievement on standardized tests and their physical health as measured by their body composition, body mass index, cholesterol levels, and blood pressure.Purposeful sampling was used to recruit participants in this study. The experimental group consisted of 17 fourth-grade students who attend a rural Indiana school. The control group for this study consisted of 20 fourth-grade students who attend the same rural Indiana elementary school.After parental permission forms were returned from students in the experimental group, those 17 students participated in the daily physical activity program that met for approximately 20 minutes each day from January 31, 2002 through April 12, 2002. The researcher taught the daily physical activity program that involved aerobic activities during which the students wore heart rate monitors to help them monitor their heart rates. The goal for each activity time was for the students to maintain a heart rate between 150 and 200 beats per minute. The focus of the daily physical activity program was on cardiovascular wellness. The control group consisted of 20 students who participated in their school's regular physical education program offered one day a week for 45 minutes. During the time that the experimental group participated in the daily physical activity program, the students in the control group were at recess where they could participate in unstructured activities of their choice.Data was collected and compared from standardized test scores, and health data provided by an independent organization, The Caylor Nickel Foundation, to determine if there was a significant difference between the control group and experimental group in their academic achievement and physical health factors.Univariate analyses of variance (ANOVA) were used to determine any significant differences between the groups (p =.05). The results indicated no significant difference between the control and experimental groups in academic achievement as measured by the NWEA Test in the areas of language, reading, and math. No significant difference was found in the cholesterol levels or the diastolic blood pressure of the two groups of students. A significant difference was found between the groups in their body composition, body mass index and systolic blood pressure. It was found that the experimental group had healthier results in their body composition, body mass index, and lower systolic blood pressure levels. / School of Physical Education

The present study was designed to simultaneously examine the prevalence of insomnia, hypersomnia, and delayed sleep phase syndrome (DSPS) among college students, while also examining the relations of depression (atypical and melancholic) and anxiety. Analyses revealed that insomnia, anxiety, poorer sleep efficiency, longer sleep latency, and shorter sleep duration were all correlated with melancholic features of depression and that anxiety, insomnia, and sleep latency were the strongest predictors of melancholic depression. Anxiety, excessive daytime sleepiness, insomnia, shorter sleep duration, poorer sleep efficiency, and longer sleep latency were all correlated with atypical depressive features, whereas anxiety and sleep latency were the strongest predictors for atypical depressive symptoms. The Composite Scale of Morningness correlated with sleep latency, later night times both during the week and on the weekends, later morning times both during the week and on weekends, and the difference between morning times on weekends versus the weekdays. Further research is needed to explore the relations among the depression subtypes and sleep problems and for development of more adequate measures to assess various sleeping problems and depression subtypes. / Department of Psychological Science

The purpose of this investigation was to identify college students' attitudes toward wellness and to identify the differences in these attitudes among various groups of university students. The subjects who participated in this study were students randomly chosen from the six wellness residence halls and six traditional residence halls at Ball State University. One hundred and twenty-one of the 200 subjects selected, completed and returned a modification of the Archer Wellness survey on college students' attitudes toward wellness. A two-way analysis of variance on the data between groups of students living in wellness residence halls and students living in traditional residence halls found significant differences in the following categories: 1) need for information and assistance, 2) current level of wellness, 3) health and longevity concerns, and 4) environment. Differences between male and female respondents were found on the need for information and assistance score and the environment score. The chi-square statistic was computed for the data where subjects selected activities and behaviors they believed were beneficial and detrimental to their wellness. From the activities/behaviors selected to be detrimental to wellness, lack of leisure time was found to be significant between the two groups. / Department of Physiology and Health Science