April 7-9, 2022 • Hyatt Regency • Lexington, KY
Communication Strategies to Promote Comprehensive Well-being
Communication Strategies to Promote Comprehensive Well-being
Abstract: Community Vitality: A Healthy Life for Everyone—A Four-Part Interdisciplinary Research Study
Kentucky residents exhibit multiple unhealthy habits. According to America’s Health Rankings Annual Report (2019), Kentucky ranked 43rd in overall health. The biggest challenges observed were an increased prevalence of multiple chronic conditions (e.g., obesity, cardiovascular disease, cancer), high premature death rate, and tobacco use. The unhealthy patterns have led to an average life expectancy of 76 years, ranking 46th among all states. This figure is considerably lower than the national average of 78.79 years. University faculty from nursing, exercise science, nutrition, psychology, and occupational safety and health, are conducting a four-part research project inspired by healthy lifestyles of centenarians in the world’s Blue Zones. Blue Zones are areas where people live measurably longer, happier lives with lower rates of chronic disease and a higher quality of life (Buettner, 2012). In Calloway County, Kentucky, efforts have been made to improve residents’ health, but there is room for improvement. For example, obesity rates are 34% (DataUSA, 2021). The aim is to provide education about behaviors contributing to longevity, and compare and contrast those lifestyles with habits of residents of Calloway County. Constructs of the Health Belief Model are explored so that results are situated in terms of benefits and barriers to engaging in healthy behaviors (LaMorte, 2019). This four-part study involves community resource website development, survey on protective factors and barriers to healthy lifestyles, interviews with elderly people in the community about lifestyles, and education on findings in elementary schools. The website was created using multiple areas of expertise, including local resources that relate to movement, rest, nutrition, and connections. The website will go live on January 1, 2022. The website URL will be shared with people of all ages in the community so they have access to one location with recommendations that enable them to achieve a healthier lifestyle. The survey was administered via email and social media February through April, 2021. Data includes barriers to eating fruits and vegetables, exercising, socializing, and stress reduction. Data are being analyzed (n = 185). The majority of participants were female (82%) and married (66.2%). Mean age was 43 years. Half the sample was employed 40 hours or more during the time of data collection. Correlation analyses will be performed on the quantitative data. For the qualitative component, respondents were asked to provide narrative about how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected each of these areas. Qualitative data will be analyzed using thematic analysis by a team of three coders. Percent agreement will be calculated after each researcher independently codes 10% of the data (Riffe, Lacy, & Fico, 2013). If agreement is achieved, researchers will divide the remaining content and continue with analysis. Findings will inform community members, health practitioners, and communication scholars. Barriers will be addressed using a social marketing approach (Lee & Kotler, 2016). In addition, appreciative inquiry (Cooperrider & Srivastva, 1987) will be applied to capitalize on healthy behaviors. Likewise, the diffusion of innovations model (Rogers, 2003) will help to explain the adoption of behaviors in each of the four areas.