Abstract:
The purpose of this research study was to examine the relationships and prediction of predisposing factors (including knowledge, self-concept, and self-esteem), reinforcing factor (social support), and enabling factor (accessibility to health care services) on health behavior. One hundred and twenty-eight out-patients who had cardiac permanent pacemakers (both males and females) aged between 18 and 59 years were recruited from cardiac permanent pacemaker clinics located at the Bhumibol Adulyadej Hospital, Rajavithi Hospital, and Chulalongkorn Hospital with multi-stage sampling technique. The instruments were composed of 1) demographic information 2) knowledge of cardiac permanent pacemaker 3) self-concept scale 4) self-esteem scale 5) social support instrument 6) accessibility of service questionnaire and 7) health behavior questionnaire. The reliabilities of these questionnaires were 0.66, 0.86, 0.78, 0.95, 0.81, and 0.71, respectively. Descriptive statistics, Pearsons product moment correlation coefficient and enter regression were used to analyze data. The major findings were as follows: 1. The mean score of health behavior among patients with cardiac permanent pacemaker was good (= 33.3, SD = 3.9) 2. Social support, knowledge and self-concept were positively related to health behavior in patients with cardiac permanent pacemaker at the level of .05 (r = .523, .508, and .369, respectively). There were no relationships of self esteem and accessibility of service on health behavior among the subjects. 3. Knowledge, self-concept, self esteem, social support, and accessibility of service explained 44% (R2 = .44, p < .05) of total variances of health behavior in patients with cardiac permanent pacemaker.