Effects of decisional control and work orientation on persistence in preventive health behavior.
Examined persistence in the daily use of fluoride mouthrinse among adolescents as a function of an induced-choice manipulation concerning self-management strategies and freedom to participate in the program. Seventh-grade boys and girls from urban and suburban schools were randomly assigned to a series of either high- or low-choice decisional control manipulations; their daily, home use of fluoride was monitored over a 20-week period. In order to ameliorate the relatively lower persistence rates found previously among suburban (vs. urban) students, all students were given self-management and action instructions as per previous studies. Although suburban students still declined in persistence relative to urban students, female students who received high choice persisted at a higher rate than girls who received low choice. Boys, for the most part, were unaffected by the manipulation. In addition, students' self-reported work orientation was also positively associated with persistence.
Burleson
J A
JA
Department of Behavioral Sciences and Community Health, University of Connecticut Health Center, Farmington 06032.
Kegeles
S S
SS
Lund
A K
AK
D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D003657:Decision Making; D003731:Dental Caries / Q000517:prevention & control*; D005260:Female; D005459:Fluorides / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D007206:Individuality; D007389:Internal-External Control; D008297:Male; D009067:Mouthwashes; D010349:Patient Compliance
D009067:Mouthwashes; D005459:Fluorides