Abstract
Guided by social identity theory (SIT), this study considers how identification influences health seeking behaviours among college students in Kenya and the USA. The study sought to investigate how felt-connectedness among students influenced the health choices they made and the relevance of identification to health. Data were collected using responsive interviews with 22 students in a large Kenyan university and 21 students at a Midwestern university. The age of the participants from both countries ranged from 20 to 29 years. Data were coded and analysed using thematic analysis. The findings of the study indicate that identification influenced students’ health seeking behaviours, especially on use of contraceptives, vaccination, choosing a physician, offering advice, eating habits, and in ensuring safety for friends at risk. This study point to the need of health communicators to utilize identification in health interventions targeting college students.
Highlights
The people in a person’s life influence how that person views the world and makes decisions (Paquin & Keating, 2017)
Data Collection After approval of the study by the Institutional Review Board (IRB), data were collected over the summer of 2019 using face-to-face responsive interviews because of they allow for an in-depth study of implicit beliefs and attitudes (Keyton, 2014; Lindlof & Taylor, 2011; Rubin & Rubin, 2012)
The content of these themes suggested that the students’ health seeking behaviours were influenced by their desire to identify with other students and to maintain existing friendships with peers
Summary
The people in a person’s life influence how that person views the world and makes decisions (Paquin & Keating, 2017). Most extant studies have investigated how people make health choices, there is minimal research into how identification influences health-seeking behaviours among college students. Identification refers to the dynamic social process by which we create identities that guide us and influence our perceptions of the world (Scott, Corman, & Cheney, 1998). Examining how identification influences the decision making of health-related issues can help health practitioners to design effective health campaigns. Using the social identity theory, the overarching goals of this study were: to consider how identification at personal and collective levels influence students’ health seeking behaviours and how health communicators can utilize this information to design effective health messages when targeting students. We begin by reviewing the relevant literature on identification and health seeking, followed by a discussion of the guiding theoretical framework, and the research questions
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