COGNITIVE AND VALUE CORRELATES OF HEALTH-RELATED BEHAVIOR IN BRAZILIAN MIDDLE-CLASS WOMEN

The prevalence of several health-related behaviors was studied in a ra ndom sample of 294 Brazilian middle-class women between 25 and 45 year s of age. The interrelationships among these behaviors confirmed previ ous findings in North America and provided the basis for the computati on of a composite index of health behavior. The sociodemographic, cogn itive, and value correlates of scores on the Health Behavior Index (HB I) were investigated using regression analysis. Women who behave in fa vor of good health were mothers of more children, had a definition of health as higher level functioning and self-realization, believed that care outweighs chance as a determinant of health, and valued inner ha rmony as opposed to comfort and independence. These findings verified most aspects of Fender's health promotion model (Pender, Walker, Sechr ist, & Stromberg, 1990).