FACTORS INFLUENCING THE IMMUNIZATION STATUS OF INFANTS AT SIX MONTHS OF AGE (SIX MONTHS OLD).
Contributors: University of Kansas.
Published: 1995
Number of pages: 132
Subjects: Health Sciences, Nursing.; Health Sciences, Public Health.
Description: A major health objective identified by the United States Public Health Service for the year 2000 is to immunize 90% of two year old children against preventable communicable diseases. Great progress was made during the 1980's to insure the immunization status of school-aged children, but efforts for younger children have lagged behind with less than half of the two year old children appropriately immunized. The purpose of this longitudinal, multivariate study was to identify factors which influence parental choice to immunize children during the first six months of an infant's life.

Based on the literature a conceptual framework was proposed which included Family Factors (Family Coping and Social Support), Maternal Factors (Perceived Stress, Health Knowledge and Perceptions, and Maternal Role Attainment), Structural Factors (Perceived Barriers), and Sociodemographic Factors (Maternal Age, Socioeconomic Status, and Ethnicity) to predict the immunization status of six month old infants. Cronbach alphas of all instruments used ranged from 0.70 to 0.90, except one designed to measure Barriers, 0.53-0.59.

Data were gathered from a convenience sample of 158 mothers giving birth at a large metropolitan hospital or a suburban county hospital. Scores from two data collection points, early postpartum period (Time 1) and six months postpartum (Time 2) were analyzed. Using Chi Square and t-Tests it was found that at Time 2 mothers perceived less stress and were more knowledgeable about communicable diseases and immunizations than at Time 1. The results of a step-wise multiple regression revealed that a statistically significant, 12.6% of the variance in the outcome variable could be explained by six of the predictor variables in the conceptual framework measured at Time 1. A second iteration of analysis was conducted with the addition of sociodemographic variables measured in the study, but not part of the original conceptual framework. The results of a second stepwise multiple regression revealed that a combination of eight predictor variables significantly explained 17.3% of the variance in the outcome variable: Maternal Factors-Perceived Stress; Family Factors-Social Support; Structural Factors-Perceived Barriers; and Sociodemographic Factors-Mother's Age, Socioeconomic Status, Number of Children, Method of Payment, and Miles to Provider.

Explanations for the unaccounted variance included the use of an instrument with low alpha coefficient, variables not measured, maturation, and mortality. Also, the threat of history may have had a significant influence on the data as a large and extremely successful metropolitan campaign to improve the immunization status of children occurred during the course of the study. The findings offer an understanding of the factors influencing parental decisions to immunize their children and have implications for nursing in terms of interventions to improve levels of immunizations.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 57-02, Section: B, page: 0993.

Thesis (PH.D.)--UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS, 1995.

School code: 0099.