A Q-ANALYSIS OF THE ENABLING CHARACTERISTICS OF CHRONICALLY ILL SCHOOLAGE CHILDREN FOR THE PROMOTION OF PERSONAL WELLNESS.
Contributors: University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Published: 1992
Number of pages: 158
Subjects: Health Sciences, Nursing.; Education, Health.
Description: The purpose of this study was to describe the enabling characteristics of chronically ill schoolage children for the promotion of personal wellness. This objective was accomplished through the administration of a Q-sort instrument, a 30 bipolar stimulus item tool, developed by Stullenbarger (1984). The conceptual framework for the study was derived from a culmination of the Roy Adaptation Model (Roy, 1984) enriched by the works of developmental theorists (Erikson, 1963; Piaget 1963, 1972), and the tenets of Q-methodology (Stephenson, 1953).

Content validity and reliability for the Q-sort items were established. Following the procedural piloting of the instrument, 75 chronically ill schoolage children between 7 and 11 years of age and who were equally divided among the three chronicity groups (control, visibility, and unpredictability) participated in the Q-sort instrument administration.

The Q-sort stimulus items resulted in four factors of enabling characteristics representing the four adaptive behavior modes (physiologic, self-concept, interdependence, and role function). Three typal patterns were identified through Q-type factor analysis; participant assignments were chronicity group dependent. The most important enabling characteristics represented the self-concept mode. Physical activity was not positively perceived by the participants. Although 69 of the participants demonstrated reliability and achieved significant Q-sorts, the majority of significant positive Q-sorts were attributed to the control chronicity group; nonsignificant Q-sorts were attributed to the unpredictability chronicity group. Ninety-two percent of the child participants demonstrated positive valuation of health behaviors.

It was recommended that the influences of parental perception, early socialization, sense of personal control, other life stressors, gender, ethnicity, and school participation, and accessibility to health care and health information be studied. Most importantly, children as active participants in health care are encouraged. Finally, the use of Q-methodology and the Roy Adaptation Model should be extended with children.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 53-09, Section: B, page: 4593.

Thesis (D.S.N.)--UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM, 1992.

School code: 0005.