Healthy living Psychology: Self efficacy (study by zalwska-puchala)

Approach: Cognitive

Aim: To assess health behaviour of college students, to evaluate their sense of self-efficacy and to specify the relationship between health behaviour presented by participants and their sense of self-efficacy.

Hypothesis: That self-efficacy scores would correlate with healthy patterns of diet, low alcohol consumption, not smoking and engaging in physical exercise.

Method: Self report;correlation

Sample: Opportunity/self selected? 164 nursing degree students (153 female,11 male), mean age 21m various socio economic backgrounds.

Procedure: 2 self-report measures were used: The generalised self-efficacy scale and a Questionnaire of Health Belief which asked questions relating to diet, drinking alcohol, smoking and physical activity, The body mass index(physiological measure) was used to estimate a healthy body weight based on height versus width calculation.

Results: Most participants were found to be underweight (83%), had mainly high self-efficacy (54%) or average (38%). with only 8% characterised by low SE. It was not found that any socio economic variables affected SE levels.

Diet: a statistically significant correlation was found between SE and declared low fat diet. No correlation was found between SE and BMI and stated fibre consumption.

Smoking: There was no correlation between SE or BMI and smoking.

Alcohol consumption: A relationship was found between SE and drinking with those with high SE drinking alcohol was more common.

Physical exercise: Physical exercise: There was no significant relationship between self-efficacy and physical activity.

Discussion: Student were all characterised by high levels of self efficacy. The study confirmed the hypothesis about the SE only with relation to fat consumption. The surprising alcohol finding may be explained by young people with high levels of SE believing that they can safely control their consumption.

Evaluation:

Sample:
Advantage (A): representative of both genders, generalizable due to the various socio-economic
Disadvantages(D): Opportunity sample-generally high SE to do a SR confidence about themselves, Gender bias-few males.

Validity:
A: does actually measure the SE of students-based questions based on it. Gaining quantative data on the BMI and scale of SE so good to compare
D:Social desirability due to it being a self report

Reliability:
A:Self reports-standardised, easy to repeat
D: Self report, might of understood the question differently therefore cannot be consistent

Ethics:
A: Self selected- no deception and debriefing, gain consent
D: Protection- knowing they are not confident and overweight can cause psychological harm

Usefulness:
A: 2007 no issue of temporal validity because it's relevant. Alcohol finding about self find efficiency- campaigns about drinking so it can be taken into account
D: only conducted on medic students with a mean age of 21 therefore cannot be generalised to the target population.