THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SOCIAL SUPPORT AND HEALTH-PROMOTING LIFESTYLE BEHAVIORS IN UNINSURED ADULTS

Abstract

The role that health-promoting lifestyle behaviors play in the prevention of chronic disease has been widely studied and reported. However, only a limited number of studies have addressed the relationship between social support and health-promoting lifestyle behaviors. Gaps in the literature exist regarding the relationship between these variables in uninsured individuals. This study was undertaken to explore whether or not social support influences health-promoting lifestyle behaviors, specifically in an uninsured adult population. The research questions addressed in this study included: (a) Is there a relationship between social support and health-promoting lifestyle behaviors in uninsured adults? (b) Is there a relationship between social support and select demographic characteristics of uninsured adults? and (c) Is there a relationship between health-promoting lifestyle behaviors and select demographic characteristics in uninsured adults. Pender's revised Health Promotion Model (1996) provided the theoretical framework for the study. This descriptive, correlational design investigated whether a relationship exists between social support and health-promoting lifestyle behaviors in uninsured adults. The study also compared demographics, such as age, gender, marital status, income, and educational level among uninsured adults with social support, as well as with health-promoting lifestyle behaviors. A convenience sample of uninsured adults at a northeastern Wisconsin free clinic was obtained. Data was obtained via a demographic survey, the Duke-UNC Functional Social Support Questionnaire (DUFSS) and the Health Promoting Lifestyle Profile II (HPLPII). Data was analyzed per descriptive and inferential statistics. Pearson's r was used to determine the correlation between perceived social support and health-promoting lifestyle behaviors. T-testing was used to analyze the differences between demographic factors and perceived social support and health-promoting lifestyle behaviors. The alpha level was set at p<0.05. Results indicate that there is a significant relationship between perceived social support and health-promoting lifestyle behaviors in uninsured individuals. The results of the DUFSS revealed mean perceived support scores that represent that the population has some perceived social support but would like more. The HPLPII revealed a mean health-promoting lifestyle score that indicated that the population sometimes engages in health-promoting behaviors. There was also a significant relationship discovered between perceived social support in White uninsured individuals and non-White uninsured individuals. White uninsured individuals appear to have higher perceived social support than non-White uninsured participants.