Gerend Mary A, Erchull Mindy J, Aiken Leona S, Maner Jon K
Department of Medical Humanities and Social Sciences, College of Medicine, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306-4300, United States.
Maturitas. 2006 Oct 20;55(3):227-37. doi: 10.1016/j.maturitas.2006.03.003. Epub 2006 May 2.
To assess women's perceptions of risk for osteoporosis and to identify factors that shape those perceptions.
A community sample of 358 women (aged 40-86) rated their perceived risk of osteoporosis and provided detailed information about factors underlying their risk perceptions. Their open-ended responses were content analysed.
On average, participants believed they were less likely to develop osteoporosis than other women their age. In all, 63% perceived their risk as lower than other women their age; only 16% as higher. In explaining their risk, women mentioned more risk-decreasing factors than risk-increasing factors. Women who rated their risk as low attributed their risk primarily to their own preventive behaviors (e.g. taking calcium, exercising), whereas women who rated their risk as high attributed their risk primarily to their family history. Risk-increasing and risk-decreasing personal actions, hereditary factors, and physiological factors accounted for 53% of the variance in perceived risk for osteoporosis. Only one-half and one-third of all women, however, mentioned calcium consumption and exercise, respectively, as protective factors employed to reduce osteoporosis risk. Women also held misconceptions about osteoporosis risk and protective factors.
The current findings yield a detailed portrait of women's risk perceptions for osteoporosis. Increasing awareness of osteoporosis should be a priority for future osteoporosis prevention campaigns. Interventions should address misconceptions women may hold about their risk for the disease and promote specific behavioral strategies for osteoporosis prevention.
评估女性对骨质疏松症风险的认知，并确定影响这些认知的因素。
对358名年龄在40 - 86岁的社区女性样本进行调查，让她们对自己感知到的骨质疏松症风险进行评分，并提供有关其风险认知背后因素的详细信息。对她们的开放式回答进行内容分析。
平均而言，参与者认为自己比同龄的其他女性患骨质疏松症的可能性更小。总体而言，63%的人认为自己的风险低于同龄女性；只有16%的人认为自己的风险更高。在解释自己的风险时，女性提到的降低风险因素多于增加风险因素。将自己的风险评为低的女性主要将其风险归因于自己的预防行为（如补钙、锻炼），而将自己的风险评为高的女性主要将其风险归因于家族病史。增加风险和降低风险的个人行为、遗传因素和生理因素占骨质疏松症感知风险差异的53%。然而，所有女性中分别只有一半和三分之一的人提到补钙和锻炼是用于降低骨质疏松症风险的保护因素。女性对骨质疏松症风险和保护因素也存在误解。
目前的研究结果详细描绘了女性对骨质疏松症的风险认知。提高对骨质疏松症的认识应成为未来骨质疏松症预防运动的优先事项。干预措施应解决女性可能对自身疾病风险存在的误解，并推广预防骨质疏松症的具体行为策略。
