An Investigation of Hope, Health Promotion Lifestyle Behaviors, and Self-Efficacy in Young Adults with Type 1 Diabetes

Abstract

The influence of hope and self-efficacy among young adults with type 1 diabetes (T1D) has not been fully researched. Research has been conducted on the effects of hope and self-efficacy in chronic diseases such as diabetes. However, few studies have investigated hope, health promotion lifestyle behaviors, and self-efficacy on young adults with type 1 diabetes (T1D). To fill the gap, this study investigated the hope, health promotion lifestyle behaviors, and self-efficacy of young adults with type 1 diabetes. The variables in this study were age, education, and gender. The Hendricks Perceptual Health Promotion Determinants Model provided the theoretical framework that guided this study. Hope was measured using the Adolescent Hope Scale (Hendricks, Murdaugh, & Hendricks, 2004). Health promotion lifestyle behaviors was measured using the Adolescent Lifestyle Profile (Hendricks & Pender, 2001) Self-efficacy was measured by the Stanford Diabetes Self-Efficacy Scale (Lorig, Ritter, Villa, & Armas, 2009). A quantitative study was used to investigate young adults with T1D at an online group at T1D Exchange (N=130). A survey identified the effects of hope, health promotional lifestyle behaviors, and levels of self-efficacy. Pearson correlations were used to examine the relationship between hope, self-efficacy, and health promotion lifestyle behaviors. Identifying the relationships among all these variables can assist health care professionals to plan better care for young adults at the early stages of the disease. The findings revealed that hope and self-efficacy were significant predictors of health promotion lifestyles behaviors. The study mean for hope scale was 38.63 with a standard deviation of 6.92. The health promotion lifestyles behaviors reported a mean of 135.39 with a 16.89 standard deviation. The self-efficacy scale reported a mean of 7.71 with standard deviation of 1.37. The majority (76%) of the participants were from outside of the United States of America. The researcher recommends that the study be replicated in the United States as there might be an opportunity to improve participants’ self-management ability.