title: Influence of self-care education on illness behaviors and health locus of control of Mexican American women.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of self-care education on illness behaviors and health locus of control of Mexican American women. Participants were randomly assigned to a control (n = 60) or experimental group (n = 60). Subjects completed the Multidimensional Health Locus of Control questionnaire and an Illness Behavior Assessment at pretest and 6-months. The experimental group received a self-care manual and participated in two 2-hour seminars on how to effectively use the textbook. The experimental group demonstrated a significant increase in self-care behaviors, and significant changes in Internal Health Locus of Control and Powerful Others Health Locus of Control. Chance Health Locus of Control was found to have a low, direct correlation with age, and a low, indirect correlation with education. The conclusion of this investigation is that self-care education can positively influence illness behaviors and Health Locus of Control in Mexican American women.
authors.affiliation: Department of Exercise and Sport Science at Colorado State University, Fort Collins 80523, USA. kennedy@cahs.colostate.edu
authors.forename: C A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Kennedy
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: DeVoe
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ramer-Henry
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: West-Kowalski
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006266:Health Education; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D008370:Manuals as Topic; D017058:Mexican Americans; D008800:Mexico / Q000208:ethnology; D008875:Middle Aged; D012648:Self Care; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014481:United States; D016387:Women's Health