Self-efficacy and Health: The SEH Scale

• Published in: American journal of health behavior Vol. 40; no. 3; p. 389
• Main Authors: Gandoy-Crego, Manuel, Clemente, Miguel, Gómez-Cantorna, Cristina, González-Rodríguez, Rubén, Reig-Botella, Adela
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.05.2016
• Subjects: Adaptation, Psychological; Adolescent; Adult; Female; Health Behavior; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Primary Health Care; Psychometrics - instrumentation; Reproducibility of Results; Self Efficacy; Surveys and Questionnaires - standards; Young Adult
• ISSN: 1945-7359
• DOI: 10.5993/AJHB.40.3.11

Our objective was to design an instrument to measure coping self-efficacy as manifested by patients experiencing health problems. A total of 2784 individuals were interviewed while attending primary healthcare centers in the Autonomous Community of Galicia in Northwest Spain. Of these persons, 54% were women and 46% were men, with a minimum age of 18 years, and a mean age of 37.4 years. A questionnaire was administered comprised of sociodemographic variables, items related to the use of healthcare resources, and a coping self-efficacy scale of health problems (SEH), based on the self-efficacy test by Baessler and Schwarzer. Statistical analysis determined reliability, and whether the SEH scale was efficacious in detecting changes in the use of specific health resources. A parametric ANOVA was performed on 4 groups based on the quartiles of self-efficacy in health, as measured by the SEH scale. The reliability and validity of the 10-item coping self-efficacy scale of health problems (SEH) was confirmed. Its compliance with relevant psychometric requirements means the SHE scale may have more general utility.