title: A social-cognitive model to predict the use of assistive devices for mobility and self-care in elderly people.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To provide insight into the contribution of psychological variables in understanding use and nonuse of assistive devices (ADs) for self-care and mobility.
  
  
  METHODS
  A survey on a representative sample of 491 community-dwelling elderly people in Flanders was conducted. A theoretical model of the factors predicting the use of ADs was tested with path analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The possession and use of 32 ADs were found to be bivariately related to intention to use ADs, awareness of ADs, attitude toward AD use, subjective norm regarding AD use, self-efficacy concerning AD use, and socio-demographic characteristics. In regression analyses the intention to use ADs was found to be related to self-efficacy concerning AD use, attitude toward AD use, and subjective norm regarding AD use.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study suggests that a social-cognitive model of human behavior can be helpful in explaining the use of ADs. The model can suggest measures to be developed aiming to improve the introduction of ADs.
authors.affiliation: Ghent University, Faculty of Psychology, Research Group Ageing Studies, Belgium. marc.roelands@rug.ac.be
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Roelands
authors.forename: Paulette
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Van Oost
authors.forename: AnneMarie
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Depoorter
authors.forename: Ann
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Buysse
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003625:Data Collection / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008960:Models, Psychological; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012648:Self Care / Q000523:psychology*; D020377:Self Efficacy; D012656:Self-Help Devices / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data