Association of the personal factors of culture, attitude and motivation with health behavior among adolescents in Malaysia

This study was undertaken to determine the association of the personal factors of culture, attitude and motivation on health behavior among Malaysian adolescents. A cluster sampling technique was used and a total of 1,029 students with ages ranging from 15 to 17 years (M age = 15.9, SD = .637) were...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Siti Rabaah Hamzah, Turiman Suandi, Maimunah Ismail, Zulaiha Muda
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2019-04-01
Series:International Journal of Adolescence and Youth
Subjects:
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02673843.2018.1482772
Description
Summary:This study was undertaken to determine the association of the personal factors of culture, attitude and motivation on health behavior among Malaysian adolescents. A cluster sampling technique was used and a total of 1,029 students with ages ranging from 15 to 17 years (M age = 15.9, SD = .637) were selected as respondents. The research instrument was a self-administered questionnaire covering health behavior, culture, attitude, and motivation towards health. The strongest linear relationship was found between culture and health behavior (r = .618, p = .001). Besides the culture of adolescents being the main predictor of health behavior (β = .365, p = .000), attitude (β = .283, p = .000) and motivation (β = .064, p = .033) also had significant independent effects on health behavior. Hence, culture, attitude and motivation should be taken into consideration in the promotion of health education, especially at school level.
ISSN:0267-3843
2164-4527