Decision-Making Program for Rural Adolescents With Asthma: A Pilot Study

Abstract

Although a high prevalence of substance use and its adverse effects on the course of the disease have been reported in adolescents with asthma, no studies have attempted to ameliorate the risk through adequate interventions. This pilot study evaluates and supports the feasibility and the effectiveness of a decision-making program in improving decision-making quality and reducing risk motivation over a 6-month study period. Differential effectiveness of the intervention was observed by race and gender. Although the improvement of decision-making quality was observed only in Whites, changes in risk motivation were detected only in non-Whites and girls. No significant reduction in actual substance use behavior was found. The intervention was favorably received by participants. An approach enhancing decision-making quality can be effective in addressing the risk of substance use in adolescent with asthma by altering motivations.

Interventions to support children’s engagement in health-related decisions: a systematic review

“…There was no difference in overall quality of decision-making when compared to an attention placebo in the other study [29]. …”

Association of School Social Networks' Influence and Mass Media Factors With Cigarette Smoking Among Asthmatic Students

“…Tailored smoking reduction/cessation strategies for asthmatic adolescent students have included the use of Web‐based tailored asthma intervention programs with a referral coordinator; a laptop computer‐assisted decision‐making program consisting of a 10‐minute counseling session; educational programs using peer leader interactions through videos, games, and activities; and the dissemination of messages capitalizing on the influential role of older peers on younger adolescents . Future studies should identify the impact of cessation smoking messages that are (1) tailored to asthmatic students, (2) focused on the health effects due to smoking, and (3) delivered by self‐identified asthmatic actors and athletes.…”

Development and Evaluation of an Instrument to Measure Reasoning About Managing Asthma in Older School-Age Children and Adolescents

“…The RAA offers a more objective alternative to perceived self-perceptions of decision-making and problem-solving ability that have been used in the past (Murdock et al, 2010; Pulgaron et al, 2010; Rhee et al, 2008). For example, positive expectation about the ability to solve problems functioned as a liability in highly stressed situations for students who self-reported the highest level of problem-solving efficacy (Murdock et al, 2010).…”

“…Instruments used to assess self-efficacy (Bandura, 1986) related to decision-making and problem-solving abilities (Bransford & Stein, 1984; Heermann & Wills, 1992; Murdock et al, 2010; Pulgaron, Salamon, Patterson, & Barakat, 2010; Rhee, Hollen, Belyea, & Sutherland, 2008) have been unsuccessful in capturing significant differences when used to evaluate the effectiveness interventions (Heermann & Wills, 1992; Murdock et al, 2010; Pulgaron et al, 2010; Rhee et al, 2008). Although the instruments are useful, we realized that an objective measure of reasoning would be the best way to evaluate what students might actually do when experiencing acute exacerbation of asthma symptoms.…”