Screening and early detection are essential for the management and control of most diseases. It is important for women to practice routine health care that includes both clinical and self examinations. Today, many women go without health care due to barriers which prevent them from obtaining adequate care. The present study was designed to investigate, using the Health Belief Model, whether there is a difference between heterosexual and lesbian women in obtaining gynecological exams. Responses from 23 8 participants, 70 heterosexuals and 168 lesbians, indicated that the Health Belief Model was a significant predictor of whether women complied with recommended guidelines for Pap smears. Further analyses indicated that the most predictive components of the model were self-efficacy and perceived barriers. The more self-efficacy the women reported, the more likely they were to comply; whereas, the more barriers the women reported, the less likely they were to comply. Surprisingly, there were no interactions between sexual orientation and the components of the Health BeliefModel with respect to compliance. Thus, the model predicts compliance in the same way for both lesbian and heterosexual women. The results are consistent with past research indicating that the Health Belief Model is a good predictor of health behavior for some groups. Suggestions for future studies are discussed.

This paper examines whether compliance with COVID-19 mitigation measures is motivated by wanting to save lives or save the economy (or both), and which implications this carries to fight the pandemic. National representative samples were collected from 24 countries (N = 25,435). The main predictors were (1) perceived risk to contract coronavirus, (2) perceived risk to suffer economic losses due to coronavirus, and (3) their interaction effect. Individual and country-level variables were added as covariates in multilevel regression models. We examined compliance with various preventive health behaviors and support for strict containment policies. Results show that perceived economic risk consistently predicted mitigation behavior and policy support—and its effects were positive. Perceived health risk had mixed effects. Only two significant interactions between health and economic risk were identified—both positive. / New York University Abu Dhabi

This study tested the utility of the theory of planned behavior (TPB) to explain adolescent fast-food consumption among 349 high school adolescents. Subjective norms were further investigated to identify how parents and friends influenced adolescent fast-food consumption. Study participants completed a paper-based questionnaire measuring adolescent attitude, subjective norms for parents and friends, perceived behavioral control, and behavioral intention. Path analysis revealed that TPB explained adolescent fast-food behavioral intention to consume fast food. The model identified parent subjective norms had the strongest relationship with adolescent behavioral intention to consume fast food. Parent norms differed across age and grade in high school. Older adolescents perceived more approval for eating fast food than younger adolescents. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

The number one killer of women in the United States is cardiovascular disease (CVD). Cardiovascular risk factors (CVRFs) include advancing age, cigarette smoking, diabetes, dyslipidemia, family history, hypertension, obesity, sedentary lifestyle and high intake of saturated fats and low dietary fiber. A women’s risk for development of CVD dramatically increases after menopause and with the number of CVRFs. CVD is often preventable. Evidence supports addressing CVRFs reduction early (in the pre-menopausal years) through heart-healthy behaviors such as increasing physical activity, promoting healthy eating, moderate alcohol consumption and not smoking. Therefore, understanding premenopausal women’s CVRFs knowledge is an important area of inquiry. In addition, the Nemcek Wellness Model suggests that self-nurturance, as well as knowledge, may be an important factor for explaining women’s wellness behaviors. Thus, the purpose of this study was to investigate knowledge of CVRFs, level of self-nurturance and the performance of heart-healthy behaviors in women ages 35 to 55 years. This study used a cross sectional survey design and venue sampling. The survey included demographic questions, the Self Nurturance Survey, the Heart Disease Facts Questionnaire, the Physical Activity Questionnaire, Prime Screen, and questions about financial strain, cigarette smoking, and alcohol use. The sample included 136 women (survey response rate = 57%), the majority of whom were white (94.9%), married (80.1%), did not smoke (80.1%) and rarely drank alcohol (57.4%). Results indicated that study participants were very knowledgeable about CVRFs. (Mean knowledge score = 19.53, possible range = 0 to 25 with higher scores indicating greater knowledge). Knowledge did not predict physical activity (p = .07), diet (p = .08) or smoking status (p = .11) in this sample. Self-nurturance was moderately correlated (r = .33) with consuming a heart-healthy diet. Hypotheses derived from the Nemcek Wellness Model were not supported in this study. More research is needed to identify factors that will help women translate knowledge into heart-healthy behaviors.

The "obesity epidemic" in the United States is a current health concern that has sparked research interest in physical activity as a means of weight management. However, little research has examined the physical activity behaviors of rural adolescents. The goal of the current study was to use a biopsychosocial framework to examine the physical activity behaviors of a sample of rural adolescents, and explore factors associated with physical activity participation. A sample of 162 ninth- and tenth-grade students in a rural, western community were recruited for this study. Generally, the sample reported levels of physical activity for both genders that are higher than the national average. Additionally, a significant difference in physical activity between genders was not found. Results indicated that school-sponsored, low- or no-cost sports are essential to physical activity participation. Psychological factors and parent and peer support were also strongly associated with physical activity.

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The issue of childhood obesity has become a pandemic of increasing prevalence and concern. Many behaviors contributing to overweight and obesity, such as dietary intake and physical activity, are learned in childhood. It is known that parents are key agents for change in their children. Therefore, interventions aimed at decreasing childhood overweight and obesity should be targeted at parents. Many parents state that they know the healthy dietary and physical activity behaviors they should adopt for their children, but lack the confidence, or self-efficacy, to enact these behaviors. A review of the literature for self-efficacy for behaviors in these domains in parents, adults and children uncovered many key elements involved. A search for an instrument to measure parental self-efficacy was unsuccessful in locating such an instrument, so several instruments in related domains were analyzed for content and utility for the generation of a new questionnaire. A 34-item questionnaire to measure parental self-efficacy for enacting healthy dietary and physical activity behaviors in their children 6-11 years old was developed and tested with a sample of 146 parents of children 6-11 years old, who could read and write English and had access to a computer with the internet. Internal reliability of the total scale was 0.94 and the two factors, dietary behaviors (DB) and physical activity behaviors (PAB) were 0.93 and 0.94, respectively. Test-retest reliability was also significant (p

<p>  </p> <p>Pregnancy poses unjust dangers to Black women in the United States, who are currently faced with higher rates of maternal mortality and pregnancy-related adverse events than women of other races. The maternal mortality ratio for non-Hispanic Black women is 41.4/100,000 compared with 13.7/100,000 for White women (Hill et al., 2022). Although there are available statistics and other forms on expert knowledge on these dangers, risk perceptions and related behaviors are derived from subjective individual interpretations within a dynamic communicative context. While there is extensive evidence on the dangers pregnancy and childbirth pose to Black women, less is known about Black women’s conceptualizations of their own risks, the role of communication (with their healthcare providers and other sources), and the ways in which they enact agency in response to these risks. Using a multi-methodological approach that draws on in-depth interviews, qualitative network analysis and an environmental scan, this dissertation foregrounds Black women’s own narratives to explore the social construction of pregnancy risk, the role of communication with healthcare providers in the amplification or attenuation of these risks, and the broader communicative context that shapes Black women’s pregnancy experiences. In doing so, this study found that Black women’s pregnancy risk perceptions are socially constructed through communication in a socio-political context shaped by gendered racism, and Black women enacted agency in response to these risks in a variety of ways constrained by gendered racism, including intentional decision-making, extensive research, and self-advocacy. Insights from in-depth interviews and the qualitative network analysis were contextualized in an environmental scan that included a review of relevant policies, interviews with community leaders, and a review of community organizations efforts to support Black women. This dissertation concludes with a discussion of contributions to theory and insights for Black women, healthcare providers, community organizations, media and policy makers. </p>

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