Spezifische Selbstwirksamkeitserwartungen für Gesundheitsverhalten bei Grundschülern

Abstract

Self-efficacies are beliefs in one’s capacity to perform specific actions and are important predictors for behaviors. Little is known about children’s self-efficacies for health behaviors. This work aimed at developing a questionnaire to assess self-efficacies for 3 health behaviors in children ("not watching TV", "not drinking soft-drinks", "being physically active") and at exploring the relationships with actual health behaviors and overweight status. The resulting instrument assesses self-efficacies on 3 scales; answers were given on a 4-point scale. Confirmatory factor analysis revealed that the empirical data fit the model. 976 children within an overweight prevention study completed the questionnaire. Health behaviors were reported by themselves and by proxy (parents). Body height and weight were measured to define overweight status. Associations between self-efficacies and behaviors as well as overweight status are shown using logistic regression analyses. Self-efficacies were associated with self-reported TV- and drinking-behaviors and with parent-reported TV-, drinking- and activity-behaviors; high self-efficacies indicated more favorable behaviors. Effect sizes were very small and decreased with further adjustment for former behaviors, but were statistically significant. Additionally, self-efficacies were associated with overweight. Unexpectedly, high self-efficacies for drinking behaviors increased the chance of being overweight. A possible explanation could be some overlap of this scale with the experience of restrained eating that overweight children had made. Self-efficacies for health behaviors, especially for not watching TV and not consuming soft-drinks, can be assessed even in young children and contribute to the explanation of these behaviors. Thus, they should be further emphasized in health promotion programmes.