Abstract
BackgroundA novel approach suggested that cognitive and dispositional features may explain in depth the health behaviors adoption and the adherence to prevention programs. The Health Orientation Scale (HOS) has been extensively used to map the adoption of health and unhealthy behaviors according to cognitive and dispositional features. Coherently, the main aim of the current research was to assess the factor structure of the Italian version of the HOS using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis and testing the construct validity of the scale by assessing differences in health orientations between tobacco cigarette smokers and nonsmokers.MethodThe research protocol was organized in two studies. Study 1 evaluated the dimensionality of the HOS in a sample of Northern Italian healthy people. Three hundred and twenty-one participants were enrolled; they were 229 women (71.3%) and 92 men (28.7%). In Study 2, the factor structure and construct validity of the HOS Italian version was assessed trough confirmatory factor analysis using a tobacco cigarette smokers and nonsmokers population. Two hundred and nineteen participants were enrolled; they were 164 women (75.2%) and 55 men (24.8%).ResultsIn Study 1, a seven factors solution was obtained explaining 60% of cumulative variance instead of 10 factors solution of the original version of the HOS. In Study 2, the factor structure of the Italian version of the HOS was confirmed and applied to the smokers and nonsmokers; nonsmokers reported higher values than smokers in Factor 1 (MHPP) [t (208) = − 2.739 p < .007] (CI 95–4.96% to −.809), Factor 2 (HES) [t (209) = − 3.387 p < .001] (CI 95–3.93% to -. 1.03), Factor 3 (HIC) [t(213) = − 2.468 p < .014] (CI 95–2.56% to −.28) and Factor 7 (HEX) [t(217) = − 3.451 p < .001] (CI 95%- 1.45 to .39).ConclusionsResults of the Italian adaptation of HOS lead to a partial redistribution of items and confirmed 7 subscales to distinguish psycho-cognitive dispositional dimensions involved in health orientation styles.
Highlights
A novel approach suggested that cognitive and dispositional features may explain in depth the health behaviors adoption and the adherence to prevention programs
In Study 2, the factor structure of the Italian version of the Health Orientation Scale (HOS) was confirmed and applied to the smokers and nonsmokers; nonsmokers reported higher values than smokers in Factor 1 (MHPP) [t (208) = − 2.739 p < .007] (CI 95–4.96% to −.809), Factor 2 (HES) [t (209) = − 3.387 p < .001] (CI 95– 3.93% to -. 1.03), Factor 3 (HIC) [t(213) = − 2.468 p < .014] (CI 95–2.56% to −.28) and Factor 7 (HEX) [t(217) = − 3.451 p < .001] (CI 95%- 1.45 to .39)
Because the rate of missing responses at the HOS was negligible (i.e., 9.2% of participants did not answer to one item, .5% at two, 1.8% at three, and .5% at four items), missing responses at the HOS were handled using a robust full information maximum likelihood (FIML) estimation procedure
Summary
A novel approach suggested that cognitive and dispositional features may explain in depth the health behaviors adoption and the adherence to prevention programs. The five-factor model that described the personality according to five dimensions (openness, Masiero et al Health and Quality of Life Outcomes (2020) 18:69 conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism) conveyed that highly conscientious individuals (people characterized by the attitude to be organized, reliable and deliberative, and/or to have a high sense of competence, duty and need for achievement) are more likely to wear seat belts, to do physical exercise regularly, to get enough sleep, and to consume more fruits and vegetables [8,9,10] They are less likely to smoke cigarettes, to consume alcohol and binge drink. Smokers tend to attribute to fate the occurrence of negative events and diseases (external health control), while nonsmokers are more prone to recognize the role of their behaviours in their health status (internal locus of control) [26]
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