Korean J Child Health Nurs.  1999 Feb;5(1):38-47.

Health Promoting Behaviors among 6th Grade Students According to Sex

• Kim HY

Abstract

This study is the study on health promoting behaviors of 6th grade students according to sex. The purpose of this study is to find the difference in the value of health in their lives among 6th grade students according to sex, to examine the differences in practicing health promoting behaviors, and to determine the correlation between the practice of health promoting behaviors and the characteristics of these students. The subjects of this study were 177 6th grade students who were randomly selected from two elementary schools in Taegu City. The tools used to measure health promoting behaviors were the measuring utility for practicing health promoting behaviors developed by Kyung-Suk Ki (1983) and the utility for the values of health in lives developed by Wallston, Maides and Wallston and translated by Gin Yoon (1989). The data collected were analyzed with t-test, Pearson correlation coefficient, and descriptive statistics using SPSS program. The results of the present study were as follows : 1) According to the results of the value placed in health in their lives, the number of students who placed health high in their lives was 69 boys (75%) and 64girls(75.3%). 2) According to the results obtained from comparing the degree of practicing health promoting behaviors according to sex, in the field of personal hygiene and daily habits, the girls showed a higher degree of practice with 3.26+/-0.33 and the boys, 3.05+/-0.45(t=-3.484, p=0.001): and in the field of contagious diseases, the girls scored significantly higher with 3.40+/-0.39 than the boys with 2.99+/-0.54(t=-2.363, p=0.019). In the filed of preventing accidents, the girls showed a meaningfully high significant result with 3.16+/-0.46 than the boys with 2.99+/-0.54(t=-2.362, p=0.019). When the results from the total questions in the field of health promoting behaviors were compared, the girls showed a meaningfully high correlation with 3.19+/-0.28 than the boys with 3.07+/-0.36(t=-2.601, p=0.010). Thus, the results showed that the girls, compares with the boys, practice more behaviors of personal hygiene & daily habit s, prevention of communicable diseases, and prevention of accidents. 3) According to the results of the relationship between the subjects' characteristics and their health promoting behaviors according to sex, in the case of the boys, they showed a meaningful positive correlation with health promoting behaviors and the current status of health(r=0.266, p=0.005). Thus, for the boys, as their health status was better, the more health promoting behaviors they showed. In the case of the girls, the meaningful variables had a correlation with the health promoting behaviors were the number of extra-curricula activities(r=0.182, p=0.047) and the birth order(r=-0.192, p=0.024). In overall regardless of sex, the health status(r=0.188, p=0.006) and birth order(r=-0.149, p=0.024) showed a meaningful correlation with practicing health promoting behaviors. With the above results, we suggest the following proposals : 1) In elementary children of lower and upper classmen as applied with the current school age, developing a utility to measure health promoting behaviors is needed since the physical, emotional and intellectual development of these children exist. 2) According to the results of this study, developing a program for health promotion is needed in 6th grade students.

MeSH Terms

Child
Communicable Diseases
Daegu
Female
Habits
Health Promotion
Humans
Hygiene
Parturition
Child Health