Abstract:
The purposes of this predictive correlational research were to study sexual activity and to examine the predictability of predicting factors; sexual self-concept (sexual satisfaction, perceived sexual self efficacy, sexual anxiety and sexual depression) depression, sexual knowledge, and sexual communication among patients with heart failure. One hundred and forty-three males and females adult out-patients with heart failure were recruited from a multistage random sampling in the cardio clinic at Thammasat University Hospital, Police General Hospital, and Faculty of Medicine Vajira Hospital University of Bangkok Metropolis. The instruments used for data collection were the demographic data, sexual activity questionnaire, sexual self-concept, depression, sexual knowledge, and sexual communication. All questionnaires were tested for content validities by five panel of experts, and the reliabilities were .82, .95, .86, .75, and .87 respectively. Descriptive statistics and the multiple regression were used to analyze data. The results revealed: 1. The mean score of sexual activity among patients with heart failure was low ( [Mean] = 0.51, SD = 0.43). 2. Sexual self-concept, sexual communication, and sexual knowledge were positively related to sexual activity among patients with heart failure (r = .780, .695, and .159 respectively). Depression was negatively related to sexual activity among patients with heart failure (r = -.567). 3. Sexual self-concept, depression, sexual knowledge and sexual communication were good predictors for sexual activity. Variables accounted for 66.8% of total variance in sexual activity.