Health promotion refers to protecting and enhancing the health of communities, groups, and individuals. Planning activities and programs to better population health impacts is an effective strategy for promoting health and preventing illness. Programs that encourage healthy behaviours and help avoid sickness and disability may help people live longer, healthier lives. They can potentially increase access to healthcare and other social supports for underserved communities and reduce health inequalities at the population level. Executing health promotion initiatives in various settings, including rural areas, is possible. Health promotion and illness prevention initiatives benefit rural inhabitants if they are adapted to meet the specific needs of rural areas. This paper examines the theoretical underpinnings of health promotion. It justifies using the Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) as the basis for creating an efficient health promotion resource addressing hypertension. Critiquing the shortcomings of competing health promotion theories shows how SCT can guide the creation of an effective poster or leaflet.
Importance of Health Promotion
Health promotion gives Individuals and communities more agency over their health and well-being. It uses methods that promote healthier lifestyles, create safer communities, and broaden people’s access to medical care. Health promotion programs may lessen the impact of hypertension on both people and society by increasing knowledge about the disease, its risk factors, and preventative strategies (Rubinelli & Diviani, 2020).
Health Promotion Theories
Several health promotion theories and models have been developed, each providing a somewhat different angle on encouraging healthy behaviours (Philip et al., 2018). Considering the setting and the intended audience is essential when deciding which theory to use. The Transtheoretical Model, the Health Beliefs Model, and the Social Cognitive Theory are often used to explain and treat hypertension. However, the Social Cognitive Theory emerges as the best applicable theoretical framework for guiding the development of a health promotion tool (Zinatmotlagh et al., 2020).
Justification of the Social Cognitive Theory
Albert Bandura’s Social Cognition Theory analyzes how internal and external influences on one’s actions constantly interact with one another. It highlights the role of self-efficacy, social support, and observational learning in motivating behavioural change. When applied to the problem of hypertension, the SCT provides valuable information and methods for encouraging healthier practices (White et al., 2013).
The SCT relies heavily on observational learning, which holds that people pick up new skills by seeing and mimicking the actions of others around them (Zinatmotlagh et al., 2020). In the case of hypertension, this implies that health promotion materials may include first-person accounts or testimonials from people who have successfully controlled their blood pressure via behavioural changes. Posters and leaflets that feature realistic role models are more likely to encourage people to take action and make positive lifestyle changes. In addition, the health education tool may show pictures of people working on their health positively, whether via physical activity, diet, or stress management. These visible indicators facilitate learning via observation and encourage imitation (Lin & Chang, 2018).
A person’s self-efficacy is confidence in their capacity to carry out a specific action effectively. People with hypertension require confidence that they can control their condition via dietary and behavioural modifications and the use of prescribed medications. The health promotion tool may boost confidence by offering doable advice, detailed instructions, and inspiring case studies showing how positive behaviour changes are possible (Rubinelli & Diviani, 2020). Thus, to demonstrate that people can monitor and track their health, the poster or leaflet may provide extensive instructions on how to test blood pressure at home. Improved health, lower chance of problems, and longer life span are just a few of the results that may be discussed in this resource. The resource may increase one’s confidence by emphasizing the achievements of others who have effectively regulated their blood pressure.
The SCT acknowledges the value of social reinforcement in promoting behaviour modification. The health promotion tool may mobilize people’s social networks to inspire them to reach out to their loved ones or community for help (Lin & Chang, 2018). This may include suggesting that the individual participates in a local fitness program, join a social club, or involve loved ones in preparing nutritious meals. To encourage people to foster a good community, the poster or leaflet might highlight the beneficial effects of social support on health and happiness. The health promotion tool may suggest local support groups, online forums, or helplines devoted to hypertension management to highlight social support further. These tools may help people feel less alone by giving them a place to talk to others about their problems and find solutions. The resource may help people feel less alone in their efforts to control their blood pressure by raising awareness of the importance of social support networks (Lin & Chang, 2018).
Conclusion
To sum up, the Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) provides a thorough structure for creating a helpful health promotion tool to combat hypertension. The resource would encourage people to engage in healthy activities, boost their confidence in their talents, and reach out to their social networks for help. While there is room for improvement in other health promotion theories, the SCT is especially well-suited to tackling the complexity of high blood pressure treatment because of its emphasis on the interaction between individual variables, environmental impacts, and behaviour. Using the SCT’s theoretical foundation, the poster or booklet may encourage people to take charge of their hypertension, leading to better health outcomes and less strain on individuals and society.
References
Rubinelli, S., & Diviani, N. (2020). The bases of targeting behaviour in health promotion and disease prevention. Patient education and counselling, 103(12), 2395-2399.
Philip, P. M., Kannan, S., & Parambil, N. A. (2018). Community-based interventions for health promotion and disease prevention in noncommunicable diseases: A narrative review. Journal of Education and health promotion, 7.
White, N. D., Lenz, T. L., & Smith, K. (2013). Tool guide for lifestyle behaviour change in a cardiovascular risk reduction program. Psychology research and behaviour management, pp. 55–63.
Zinatmotlagh, S. F., Nikroy, F., Roustaei, N., & Eslami, A. (2020) Cognitive Factors Association with Medication Adherence among Hypertension Patients.
Lin, H. C., & Chang, C. M. (2018). What motivates health information exchange in social media? The roles of the social cognitive theory and perceived interactivity. Information & Management, 55(6), 771-780.
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