Development of a health attitude scale
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The Miller Attitude Scale effectively assesses cardiac patients' attitudes toward their medical regimens. This tool shows a significant link between patient attitudes and adherence to prescribed behaviors, aiding in better cardiac care.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Psychology
- Health Behavior Research
Background:
- Assessing patient attitudes is crucial for understanding adherence to medical regimens in cardiac disease management.
- Existing tools may not adequately capture the nuances of patient attitudes toward prescribed cardiac behaviors.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and validate the Miller Attitude Scale for assessing attitudes of patients with cardiac disease.
- To examine the relationship between patient attitudes and adherence to medical regimens.
Main Methods:
- The Miller Attitude Scale was administered to two groups: 480 members of Mended Hearts, Inc., and 35 patients with a first myocardial infarction.
- The scale's validity and reliability were assessed using Spearman Rank Correlation and alpha reliabilities.
- Factor analysis was employed to understand the underlying structure of the scale.
Main Results:
- A significant relationship was found between patient attitudes and adherence behaviors for three of the five subscales.
- The scale demonstrated high internal consistency across all five subscales in both study groups.
- Factor analysis identified eight factors, with each of the five regimen behaviors defining a distinct factor.
Conclusions:
- The Miller Attitude Scale is a valid and reliable tool for assessing the attitudes of cardiac patients toward their prescribed medical regimen behaviors.
- The scale's findings support its use in clinical settings to improve patient adherence and outcomes in cardiac disease.
Abstract:
A tool was developed to assess attitudes of patients with cardiac disease toward performing prescribed behaviors of their medical regimen. Two groups of subjects with heart disease were used to examine validity and reliability of the Miller Attitude Scale. One group included 480 members of Mended Hearts, Inc., and the second group consisted of 35 patients diagnosed with a first myocardial infarction. The second group repeated the attitude scale six months post-hospitalization. Performance of the medical regimen by this group was verified at the six-month follow-up period. Using Spearman Rank Correlation, there was a significant relationship between attitudes and adherence behaviors for three of the five subscales. Alpha reliabilities revealed a high degree of internal consistency of scale items for all five subscales when testing both groups. A factor analysis resulted in eight factors accounting for the majority of the variance. Each of the five behaviors of the medical regimen clearly defined a factor supporting used of the Miller Attitude Scale for assessing attitudes of heart patients toward behaviors of their medical regimen.