The relationship of hardiness and health behavior practices among university faculty and staff

• Main Author: Kerrigan, Anita Cimino
• Other Authors: Ball State University. School of Nursing.
• Format: Others
• Published: 2011
• Subjects: College teachers > Health and hygiene.; College teachers > Health risk assessment.
• Online Access: http://cardinalscholar.bsu.edu/handle/handle/184059; http://liblink.bsu.edu/uhtbin/catkey/722457

The purpose of this correlational study was to investigate the relationship of-hardiness, a personality characteristic composed of the elements control, challenge, and commitment, to health behavior practices among a midwestern university faculty and staff. The hypothesis of the study was there is a negative correlation between scores on the Health Related Hardiness Scale (HRHS) and the HealthPromoting Lifestyle Profile (HPLP) among university faculty and staff. Prior to conducting the study, approval of the university internal review board was obtained. Using a random numbers table and the university faculty and staff phone directory, a random sample of 100 participants was obtained. The participants were sent the Health Related Hardiness Scale (HRHS) to measure hardiness, the HealthPromoting Lifestyle Profile (HPLP) to measure health behaviors, a demographic questionnaire, and an addressed return envelope. Confidentiality of the participants was assured. Returned questionnaires implied consent to participate. The completed forms were returned to the researcher by campus mail in the envelope provided. Seventy-three questionnaires were returned; 50 could be used for analysis. The Pearson's r was used to analyze the data and tested at the 0.05 level of significance. Results revealed r = - 0.5473 with.R<0.001. The hypothesis of the study was supported. Post hoc analysis using the Pearson's r revealed negative correlations with varying degrees of significance between the three subscales of the HRHS and the six subscales of the HPLP. The information obtained from the study is valuable to nursing in planning educational and supportive strategies for a variety of clients in various settings. === School of Nursing