title: Attitudinal familism predicts weight management adherence in Mexican-American women.
abstract: Adherence to behavioral weight management programs is often limited, especially among ethnic minority populations. The current study examined whether attitudinal familism, or attention to the needs of family above those of the self, predicted poorer adherence to a behavioral weight management program in Mexican-American women. One-hundred overweight or obese Mexican-American women from the southwestern United States were enrolled in a group-based weight loss treatment. Zero-order correlations indicated that general commitment to attitudinal familism, as measured by the Attitudinal Familism Scale, was significantly negatively associated with calorie and physical activity goal completion and marginally negatively associated with session attendance. The results of the current study indicate that researchers may consider addressing familism when developing tailored weight management interventions for Mexican-American women.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA. jlaustin@unm.edu
authors.forename: Julia L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Austin
authors.forename: Jane Ellen
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.forename: Loren
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gianini
authors.forename: Marita
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Campos-Melady
mesh_terms: D000069:Acculturation; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001294:Attitude to Health; D001521:Behavior Therapy; D003469:Culture; D002149:Energy Intake; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology*; D006126:Group Processes; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D017058:Mexican Americans / Q000523:psychology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009042:Motivation; D009043:Motor Activity; D009765:Obesity / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D050177:Overweight / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D010349:Patient Compliance / Q000523:psychology*; D010352:Patient Dropouts / Q000523:psychology; D012944:Social Support; D012945:Social Values; D015206:Southwestern United States; D061217:Weight Reduction Programs; D055815:Young Adult