Health promotion in the young adult: Instrument development

The purpose of the study was to develop a reliable and valid instrument to measure health promotion in young adults. Data were collected through a 44 statement questionnaire and six demographic data items. Data were analyzed through four series of reliability and validity an3lyses, including internal consistency measures, item analysis, and factor analysis. The sample of convenience consisted of 458 young adults (ages 18 to 35 years) from four agencies in two south-central cities. Subjects were predominantly female, white, reported having yearly family incomes of either less than $15,000 or between $25,001 and $40,000, and reported . their highest level of education as "some college." The sample was almost equally represented by married and single subjects. The 44 items on the YAHPI was developed by the researcher prior to this study following concept development, instrumentation, content validation by 10 experts, and two pilot studies. Ten factors or attributes which comprised the conceptual framework for the study were: interaction, self-awareness, energic, self-care, integration, centering, individuation, self-discipline, coping efficacy, and nurturance. The total scale alpha was .9060 and factor alphas ranged from .648 0 to .7819. Ten factors, accounting for 56.7% of the variance, were initially extracted. Findings from the first analysis tended to indicate that although the instrument possessed sufficient reliability in its present form, validity was lacking . Following three additional reliability and validity analyses, the final 24-item YAHPI, with a total scale alpha of .9073, was developed. Four factors, which explain 53.2% of the variance, were extracted. Factors, or attributes, and their alpha coefficients were: integration, ,8611; self-care, .7868; social interaction, .7761; and individuated health behaviors, .7889. Additional reliability and validity studies need to be conducted in heterogeneous samples. The sample management), social interaction, integration, and self-care have been identified as attributes of health promotion, thus providing additional support for the health promotion literature. Findings tended to indicate that the psychosocial attributes are relatively more important to health promotion in young adults than is true of the general adult population.