ABSTRACTS
Volume 6, Number 3
July-September 2001
Vol. 6, Num. 3: Contents
| Up Front | Abstracts
Self-Efficacy and Rural Women's
Performance of Breast and Cervical Cancer Detection Practices
Nichole Egbert, Roxanne Parrott
Self-efficacy has become an important variable in multiple areas of
human performance, including health behavior modification (Bandura,
1997). This study explores variables that lead to women's perceived
self-efficacy in performing regular detection practices for breast and
cervical cancer. A sample of southeastern U.S. farm women (N = 206)
completed surveys that assessed their perceived and actual knowledge
of women's cancer detection practices, as well as their perceived social
norms and perceived barriers related to obtaining these tests. Regression
analyses of these data revealed that perceived peer norms and the barriers
of time and embarrassment were significant predictors of women's confidence
in their ability to follow through with cancer detection practices.
Perceived knowledge and perceived family norms significantly predicted
women's perceptions of difficulty associated with cancer detection practices
as well as women's confidence in their skills to perform breast self-examination
(BSE). Time was also a significant barrier to confidence in performing
BSE. Implications for health communication campaigns are discussed.
Inconsistent Journalism: The Coverage
of Chronic Diseases in the Mexican Press
Francisco J. Mercado-Martinez, Leticia Robles-Silva,
Nora Moreno-Leal, Claudia Franco-Almazan
The mass media are recognized by many social scientists as important
sources of medical information for lay people and as a positive influence
on those working in the health care professions. However, there is a
lack of study about print and mass media reporting on major health problems
in developing countries such as Mexico.This article presents the findings
of a study conducted to identify specific messages that the Mexican
print media convey to the general reader about chronic diseases, especially
one of the most important and pervasive, diabetes. We undertook a comprehensive
review and content analysis of secondary source media reporting in the
Boletin (Bulletin) - published by the Department of Education and Health,
Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Xochimilco. The Boletin summarizes
all articles related to health matters published in 12 national daily
newspapers and 3 magazines. Our study covered all issues of the Boletin
from 1992 through 1996. Our findings indicate that at times the press
and popular print media disseminate an incomplete and often biased picture
of chronic diseases prevalent in Mexico. Specifically, the press gives
equal or more important coverage of acute diseases, or to AIDS, than
to other major chronic conditions. The press also reproduces the biomedical
model of disease and does not address topics important to certain segments
of the population, including the patient. Moreover, the media may present
an overly idealized impression of the capability of health services.
Consequently, this failure to address the issues of certain widespread,
chronic illnesses is severe enough to ask about the role of the press
in medical health care reform. We conclude by suggesting areas for further
research.
U.S. Federally Funded Television
Public Service Announcements (PSAs) to Prevent HIV/AIDS: A Content Analysis
William DeJong, R. Cameron Wolf, S. Bryn Austin
This article reports a content analysis of 56 English-language public
service announcements (PSAs) for HIV/AIDS prevention produced since
1987 by the U.S. federal government for television broadcast. These
PSAs do not lead target audiences through a logical sequence from awareness
to motivation, skill building, and maintenance. The PSAs underutilize
a strategy of ''strategic ambiguity'' to craft individual PSAs that
can address the needs of and appeal to multiple target audiences, thereby
directing information not only to heterosexuals, the primary target
of these PSAs, but also to homosexuals and bisexuals. The PSAs largely
ignore issues related to injection drug use and needle sharing. What
drug-related portrayals there are focus on African American street junkies,
which perpetuates racial stereotypes and fails to address occasional
injection drug use. The PSAs exploit fear of HIV/AIDS to discourage
drug use but do not offer drug treatment or counseling information.
PSAs produced by the Clinton administration to promote condom use do
not fully address key reasons why people fail to use condoms: concern
about sexual pleasure, embarrassment about obtaining condoms, and lack
of skills to negotiate condom use with sexual partners. Implications
of these conclusions for the future of U.S. HIV/AIDS prevention are
discussed.
Understanding the Effects of Printed
Health Education Materials: Which Features Lead to Which Outcomes?
Printed health education materials (HEMs) are widely used to increase
awareness and knowledge, change attitudes and beliefs, and help individuals
adopt and maintain healthy lifestyle behaviors. While much of the contemporary
research and development of persuasive communication is based on McGuire's
input/output model, to date few studies have compared the impact of
a large set of inputs across a comprehensive set of the 12 outputs.
We examined the effects of printed HEMs on weight loss on the cognitive,
affective, and behavioral responses of 198 overweight adults. Participants
were recruited via a newspaper advertisement and were randomly assigned
to review one of three HEMs. Participants were interviewed and asked
to complete a series of questionnaires both before and after viewing
the HEMs. Regression analyses were conducted to identify the input characteristics
associated with success at each of the output steps. The results revealed
attractiveness, encouragement, level of information, and application
to one's life were significantly associated with early steps (attention,
liking, and understanding) as well as some of the mediating steps (recalling,
keeping, and rereading HEMs). Later steps, such as intention to change
behavior and show others, were associated with readiness to change,
self-efficacy, and perceived application to one's life. Behavior change
was more likely for those who received tailored materials and those
who had higher self-efficacy. These results provide useful direction
for the use of computers in tailoring the content of HEMs and the development
of effective communication of health information on weight loss.
FORUM
An "Urban Legend" of Global Proportion: An Analysis
of Nonfiction Accounts of the Ebola Virus
Rebecca A. Weldon
Using Brunvald's (1981) six criteria of successful urban legends, this
study explores nonfiction accounts of the Ebola virus. Focusing particularly
on Richard Preston's book The Hot Zone (1994), this study addresses
the social construction of the predatorial virus, demonstrating how
events are constructed as social problems via media representations,
and reality is transformed into legend. The implications of these depictions
of the predatorial virus are discussed, along with exploring the effects
of mass media reports on health care beliefs and practices. Likewise,
implications regarding these stories, cultural beliefs and values are
discussed.
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