The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

5095.0: Wednesday, November 13, 2002 - 12:30 PM

Abstract #47863

Conceptualizations of Health among Adults with Intellectual Disabilities

Beth A Marks, PhD, RN, Department of Disability and Human Development, University of Illinois at Chicago, 1640 W. Roosevet Rd (MC 626), Chicago, IL 60608, 312-413-4097, bmarks1@uic.edu

Literature on health conceptualization among adults with intellectual disabilities is limited, therefore, a two phase study was conducted. Phase One focused on developing a forced-choice instrument that could be used as a measure of health conception. Phase Two assessed the reliability and the construct validity of the two health conception measures and describing the participants’ health definitions from the closed-ended and forced-choice formats. The findings from this study indicate that definitions of health can be measured validly and reliably with semi-structured open-ended questions and a forced-choice questionnaire among adults with intellectual impairments. The data in this study support the existence of an acceptable internal consistency for the 13-item Health Definitions Scale (HDS). Preliminary construct validity for the HDS was demonstrated through principle components factor analysis with orthogonal varimax rotation on the 13-item HDS. The Kappa statistic was computed for each of the health conceptions questions on the Definitions of Health Semi-Structured Format Instrument to assess interrater and intrarater reliability. The results demonstrated moderate to high levels of interrater agreement among the four content specialists. The average Kappa values, which ranged from 74.9% to 91.7%, provides evidence that open-ended questions could generate reproducible and stable responses. Ppreliminary data suggests that conceptualization of health can be measured by open-ended questions regarding the meaning of the word among adults with intellectual impairments. The results also demonstrated that adults with intellectual impairments have an understanding of health that parallels the general population’s multidimensional conception of health, and, incorporates their life experiences as disabled adults.

Learning Objectives:

Keywords: Health Behavior, Health Education Strategies

Related Web page: None

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.

Intellectual Disabilities

The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA