THE DEVELOPMENT OF A METHOD FOR MEASURING ANTICIPATED ILLNESS BEHAVIOR IN 3 COMMON INJURIES

This note outlines the rationale, development and validation of three injury scenarios as objective measures of anticipated illness behaviou r. The measures were originally developed to consider differences in i llness behaviour with distance from medical services in rural and remo te areas of Queensland, Australia. However, the measures have a more u niversal applicability than the purpose for which they were developed. Unlike other measures of illness behaviour, the scenarios each incorp orate a number of progressively worsening stages which permit the mapp ing of changes in individual or group behaviour. By working through co nditions stage by stage, the likelihood of individual variations in in terpretation of condition severity is greatly reduced and so a better understanding of people's responses to these conditions is obtained. I n a survey of 800 rural households, each scenario met the proposed cri teria of: (i) increasing urgency of action with increasing condition s everity; and (ii) increasing agreement about urgency of action with in creasing severity. The fractured limb scenario was perceived by respon dents (in terms of urgency and agreement about type of action) as the most serious condition. There was little difference in perceived serio usness for the other two conditions.