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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Wade G. Hill, PhD, APRN, BC, College of Nursing, Montana State University, 207 Sherrick Hall, Bozeman, MT 59717, 406-994-4011, whill@montana.edu and Patricia B. Butterfield, PhD, RN, FAAN, School of Nursing, University of Washington, Box 357263, Seattle, MT 98195-7263.

Problem Perceived self-efficacy has become an important intrapersonal variable to consider with respect to understanding or changing behavior. Because self-efficacy is not considered a global trait but rather a differentiated set of beliefs that depend on the behavior in question (Bandura, 2001), development of instrumentation is needed to address self-efficacy of household environmental risk reduction behaviors. Description of Project The Environmental Risk Reduction through Nursing Intervention and Education (ERRNIE) study seeks to gain a richer understanding of perceived and actual environmental health risks for lower-income, rural children and test a public health nurse delivered intervention to improve risk reduction behaviors. Two pilot studies were nested within ERRNIE to evaluate the SEERR instrument for future use in measuring self-efficacy of environmental risk reduction utilizing samples of low-income rural residents in Montana. In the first pilot study (n = 32), the SEERR instrument consisted of 15 items measuring self-efficacy of risk reduction behaviors targeting for five exposures of interest in the ERRNIE study including radon, environmental tobacco smoke, well-water quality, lead, and carbon monoxide. After examining concerns about the reliability and validity of the measure and making modifications, a second pilot test was initiated (n = 33) to evaluate changes. Findings For the first pilot study, face and content validity was assessed through expert review and overall á for the 15 items was 0.89. Despite this, reliability for each of the 5 subscales representing exposures of interest ranged from .59-.80 suggesting that some improvements were necessary. Data for the second pilot study suggest that the modification made improved internal consistency of the measure. Overall reliability improved to 0.93 and the subscale internal consistency ranged from .80-.90. Implications Because the most proximal setting for many environmental exposures is the home, more research is needed to understand determinants of risk reduction behaviors in this environment. Among other factors, self-efficacy may prove to be an important variable to consider in the course of attempting to support positive risk reduction behaviors, and valid and reliable measurements are necessary to continue this work.

Bandura, A. (2001). A Guide for constructing self-efficacy scales. Palo Alto, California: Stanford University.

Learning Objectives:

• Discuss the application of the SEERR instrument to measure self-efficacy related to environmental risk reduction behaviors.
• Articulate the importance of self-efficacy in performing risk reduction behaviors.
• Discuss the importance of tailoring self-efficacy measure to specific risk reducing behaviors.

Keywords: Self-Efficacy, Environmental Health

Related Web page: www.montana.edu/errnie

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No