Self-efficacy and Health: The SEH Scale.
OBJECTIVE
Our objective was to design an instrument to measure coping self-efficacy as manifested by patients experiencing health problems.


METHODS
A total of 2784 individuals were interviewed while attending primary healthcare centers in the Autonomous Community of Galicia in Northwest Spain. Of these persons, 54% were women and 46% were men, with a minimum age of 18 years, and a mean age of 37.4 years. A questionnaire was administered comprised of sociodemographic variables, items related to the use of healthcare resources, and a coping self-efficacy scale of health problems (SEH), based on the self-efficacy test by Baessler and Schwarzer. Statistical analysis determined reliability, and whether the SEH scale was efficacious in detecting changes in the use of specific health resources. A parametric ANOVA was performed on 4 groups based on the quartiles of self-efficacy in health, as measured by the SEH scale.


RESULTS
The reliability and validity of the 10-item coping self-efficacy scale of health problems (SEH) was confirmed.


CONCLUSIONS
Its compliance with relevant psychometric requirements means the SHE scale may have more general utility.
Full Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Department of Nursing, Santiago de Compostela, Spain. miguel.clemente@udc.es.
Manuel
M
Gandoy-Crego
Universidad de A Coruña, Department of Psychology, A Coruña, Spain.
Miguel
M
Clemente
Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Department of Nursing, Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
Cristina
C
Gómez-Cantorna
Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Department of Social Work, Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
Rubén
R
González-Rodríguez
Universidad de A Coruña, Department of Psychology, A Coruña, Spain.
Adela
A
Reig-Botella
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011320:Primary Health Care; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000295:instrumentation*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D020377:Self Efficacy; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires / Q000592:standards*; D055815:Young Adult