Hope in the general Norwegian population, measured using the Herth Hope Index.
OBJECTIVE
The aims of this study were to describe hope in a large sample that was drawn from the general Norwegian population and to examine how sociodemographic and health-related variables were related to hope.


METHODS
Of 4,000 adult citizens, randomly drawn from the National Register, 1,912 (49%) returned the Norwegian version of the Herth Hope Index (HHI).


RESULTS
When demographic and health-related variables were controlled for, age, gender, marital status, and employment status were significantly related to hope. The most important health-related variable was self-assessed health status, with participants who were satisfied with their health reporting significantly higher levels of hope. Participants who indicated that they had a chronic disease reported significantly higher hope scores compared to those without a chronic disease. Older men, individuals who were receiving a pension or were unemployed, and individuals who were widowed or unmarried reported the lowest levels of hope. In this study, an individual's subjective evaluation of his/her health was the most important health-related predictor of hope.


CONCLUSIONS
The most important health-related variable that predicted hope was self-assessed health in that participants who were satisfied with their health reported higher levels of hope. This finding suggests that an individual's subjective assessment of health is a better predictor of hope than the presence a chronic disease. Knowledge about levels of hope in the general population can be used as reference values against which an individual score or a group mean may be compared.
Rustøen
Tone
T
Faculty of Nursing, Oslo University College, Norway. tone.rustoen@su.hio.no
Wahl
Astrid K
AK
Hanestad
Berit R
BR
Lerdal
Anners
A
Miaskowski
Christine
C
Moum
Torbjørn
T
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002908:Chronic Disease / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009013:Morale; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009664:Norway; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors