Abstract
BACKGROUND: There is an established link between socioeconomic status (SES) and performance of health behaviors with more health protective and fewer health-risking behaviors in higher SES groups.
PURPOSE: This research is novel in testing the moderating effect of SES on the relationship among intention, self-efficacy, and subsequent behavior.
METHODS: Effects were tested on data from three prospective correlational studies examining smoking initiation in adolescents (N = 826), breastfeeding in primiparous women (N = 202), and physical activity in working adults (N = 509).
RESULTS: Despite examining different behaviors, samples, time intervals, and measures of SES, each study showed significant interactions between intention and SES in predicting behavior. In all three tests, the intention-behavior relationship was attenuated among individuals from lower SES groups. No moderation effects of SES were found for self-efficacy.
CONCLUSIONS: The intention-health behavior relationship can be attenuated in lower SES samples. This finding may contribute to our understanding of SES differences in health behaviors.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 19-30 |
| Number of pages | 12 |
| Journal | Annals of behavioral medicine : a publication of the Society of Behavioral Medicine |
| Volume | 46 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Aug 2013 |
Keywords
- Adolescent
- Adult
- Breast Feeding
- Child
- Cognition
- Female
- Health Behavior
- Humans
- Intention
- Male
- Motor Activity
- Prospective Studies
- Risk-Taking
- Self Efficacy
- Smoking
- Social Class
- Socioeconomic Factors
- Surveys and Questionnaires
- Journal Article