Chen Mei-Yen, James Kathy, Wang Edward K
Nursing Department, Chang Gung Institute of Technology, 261, Wen-Hwa 1st Road, Kwei-Shan, Tao-Yuan 333, Taiwan.
Int J Nurs Stud. 2007 Jan;44(1):59-69. doi: 10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2005.11.015. Epub 2006 Jan 4.
The main aim of this study was to compare the health promotion practices of Taiwanese (n=265) and American (n=285) adolescents, using the revised Adolescent Health Promoting scale.
A comparative and descriptive design was used. Categorical data analysis was applied to explore the association of culture differences and adolescent health-promoting behaviors.
Findings indicated significant differences between Taiwanese and American adolescents in some demographic characteristics: American participants had higher self-perceived health status (p<0.001), parental educational level (p<0.001), overweight percentage (p<0.001), and rate of living only with the mother (p<0.001) than the Taiwanese participants. Taiwanese adolescents had a higher frequency of health-promoting behavior than Americans in terms of healthy diet behavior, stress management, health responsibility, and social support (p<0.01), but less frequently engaged in exercise and life appreciation (p<0.001). Because many of the demographic characteristics between the two countries, such as the parent's educational level, differ significantly, a comparison can be difficult. However, healthy behavior is an important measure of demand for preventive health services.
The findings should sound an alarm for all public health professionals to take heed of what is happening to our youth based on culture differences. School and family health promotion counseling should be encouraged for adolescents to improve their lifestyle habits. Based on the findings, school health promotion programs should focus on factors for which there may be significant local ethnic differences. For the locales in this study, Taiwanese adolescents need encouragement to improve their exercise and life appreciation behaviors. For American adolescents, healthy diet, stress management, health responsibility, and social support should be emphasized.
本研究的主要目的是使用修订后的青少年健康促进量表，比较台湾青少年（n = 265）和美国青少年（n = 285）的健康促进行为。
采用比较性描述性设计。应用分类数据分析来探讨文化差异与青少年健康促进行为之间的关联。
研究结果表明，台湾青少年和美国青少年在一些人口统计学特征上存在显著差异：美国参与者的自我感知健康状况（p < 0.001）、父母教育水平（p < 0.001）、超重百分比（p < 0.001）以及仅与母亲生活的比例（p < 0.001）均高于台湾参与者。在健康饮食行为、压力管理、健康责任和社会支持方面，台湾青少年的健康促进行为频率高于美国青少年（p < 0.01），但在锻炼和生活欣赏方面的频率较低（p < 0.001）。由于两国之间的许多人口统计学特征，如父母的教育水平，存在显著差异，因此比较可能会有困难。然而，健康行为是预防性健康服务需求的一项重要指标。
这些发现应给所有公共卫生专业人员敲响警钟，促使他们基于文化差异关注青少年的状况。应鼓励针对青少年的学校和家庭健康促进咨询，以改善他们的生活方式习惯。基于这些发现，学校健康促进项目应关注可能存在显著当地种族差异的因素。对于本研究中的地区，台湾青少年需要得到鼓励以改善他们的锻炼和生活欣赏行为。对于美国青少年，则应强调健康饮食、压力管理、健康责任和社会支持。
