Spiritual_Wellness_Holistic_Health_and_the_Practic

84 Philosophical Foundations of Health Education
philosophical inquiry. Average time for completion of the inventory was twenty
minutes.
Participants in the study represented a nationwide selection of health education
practitioners and academicians. Table 10.2 depicts frequencies and percentages for
demographic variables requested in the HEPI, overall and by group. Statistics revealed
that the study was well - balanced and representative of the field. The majority of the
participants were female ( n 55, 56.7 percent) and Caucasian ( n 87, 90.6 percent).
All participants had a minimum of a bachelor ’ s degree, with 45 percent with a master
’ s degree and 54 percent with a doctorate. Primary health education setting included
university/college ( n 56, 57.7 percent), followed by community ( n 28, 28.9 percent).
The number of practitioners ( n 34, 64.2 percent) who were CUES was higher
than the number of academicians ( n 21, 45.7 percent) who were CHES, though the
combined rate averaged 57.3 percent. The mean age of participants was 47.5 years
old, ranging from 21 to 72 years. Mean years of work experience in the health education
profession was reported as 17.9. Data indicated that participants in the study were
well - educated, experienced professionals.
Content analysis procedure divided participants ’ responses to the educational situations
in the vignettes as supportive, eclectic, or alternative of the health education
philosophy, as determined by markings on the continuum. In the HEPI, each philosophy
was addressed twice within the series of vignettes. Thus, from a sample size of 99,
support for each philosophy could reach as high as 198 if all respondents responded to
all vignettes. Philosophical preference in educational settings, as depicted by the series
of vignettes, was behavior change ( n 74, 39.78 percent), followed by freeing/functioning
( n 69, 35.75 percent) (see Table 10.3 ). Variations in philosophical preferences
among health education practitioners and academicians were reported by means
and standard deviations. ANOVAs (see Table 10.4 ) determined significant difference
in freeing/functioning philosophy ( p < .05). Academicians were more likely to make
educational decisions based on the principles consistent with this philosophy.
Significant differences were also discovered in behavior change and social change
( p < .10). Practitioners preferred social change , while academicians demonstrated
stronger agreement with behavior change .
Means were utilized to determine group ranking of philosophical beliefs as stated
in the rank order exercise (see Table 10. 5). Preferred philosophies of health educators
in this exercise were decision - making followed by behavior change . Spearman - rho
correlation coefficient and independent t - tests discovered no significant differences in
rank order of philosophical beliefs among health educators who were practitioners or
academicians.
FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS
Two potentially opposing philosophies, behavior change and freeing/functioning , vie
for position of single, dominant preferred health education philosophy as determined
by choices in educational settings. Significant differences ( f 7.93, p < .05) in