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KMID : 1022120090110010017
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Health and Welfare
2009 Volume.11 No. 1 p.17 ~ p.42
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Influence of Health Beliefs on Preventive Health Behaviors for Cancer among Middle-Aged Women
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Park Eun-Hee
Cho Young-Ha
Kim Won-Joong
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Abstract
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The purpose of this study was to compare the preventive health behaviors for cancer by characteristics and to find out the factors, such as health beliefs, influencing those behaviors among middle-aged women, thus suggesting a scientific basis for the implementation of effective health care policies to prevent cancer.
The data were collected from 378 middle-aged women between 40 to 64 years old by using a structured questionnaire through individual interviews from February 1 to April 10, 2009. The analysis was done by using SPSSWIN 14.0 program, including t-test, χ2-test, ANOVA, logistic regression and multiple regression.
The following results were obtained.
First, health beliefs were significantly different by such characteristics as age, number of family members, etc., and especially significant differences were shown in perceived susceptibility, severity and benefit among measures consisting health beliefs according to family history of cancer.
Second, there were significant differences in preventive health behaviors for cancer including medical check-up for cancer regularly, abstinence from alcohol for cancer prevention, following guidelines on nutrition, and interest and use of cancer information, according to certain characteristics such as age, education levels, and so on. Above all family history of cancer was significantly associated with regular medical check-up for cancer and the abstinence from alcohol, and there were significant differences in practicing medical check-up for cancer regularly, practicing the abstinence from alcohol, and the level of interest and use of cancer information by the status of insuring for cancer.
Third, regarding the factors influencing preventive health behaviors for cancer, the practice of regular medical check-up for cancer was significantly affected by such variables as age, monthly household income, having a job, etc., and alcohol dependency by 3 variables from health belief including perceive susceptibility, severity and benefit, and age, household income, insuring for cancer, family history of cancer. The practice of following guidelines on nutrition was significantly influenced by perceived severity and benefit, age, education level, insuring for cancer, etc, and the interest and use of cancer information by perceived susceptibility, benefit, barriers, age, household income, insuring for cancer, family cancer history, and so on.
In conclusion, perceive susceptibility, severity and benefit consisting health beliefs of middle-aged women were the major factors affecting most preventive health behaviors for cancer, also significantly associated with family history of cancer, age, household income, etc..
Since middle-aged women are vulnerable to exposure of cance, more efforts should be put to practice health behaviors for the prevention of cancer, and, it seemed, however, that individual perception and endeavor was not sufficient enough, suggesting that preventive health behaviors for cancer, especially including regular medical check-up, should be practiced more systematically and actively.
Also considering the practice of preventive health behaviors for cancer determined by health beliefs and many other factors of middle-aged women, it is necessary to encourage social efforts, effective publicity and political measures in order for health belief of middle-aged women to promote preventive aspects for cancer.
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KEYWORD
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middle-aged women, health belief, preventive health behaviors for cancer
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