Secondary School Students' Views on Sexuality and Sexual Health Education.

Objective: This study examined the views of secondary school students on sexuality and sexual health education in Hong Kong, China. Methods: A total of 818 secondary school students (mean age = 15.3 years, SD = 1.6) participated in this study by completing a questionnaire consisted of items on sociodemographic characteristics, sexual attitudes, and other measuring scales. Results: Students were slightly permissive in sexual attitudes and supported sexual health education. However, students who were male, highly liberal in sexual attitudes, and low in religiosity and spirituality were less supportive. Conclusions: Educators may need to address these deterring factors of sexual health education before teaching specific sexual health topics.

Secondary school students in Hong Kong show liberal sexual attitudes. Liberal sexual attitudes may lead to risky sexual behaviors which may deleteriously affect students' physical and psychological health. To promote students' sexual health, school-based SHE should foster positive sexual attitudes among students, particularly students who are male, older, higher in year of study, or non-religious affiliated. Our data on students' responses to items of ATSS provide useful information on sexual topics that need to be addressed. School authorities may consider conducting intervention or workshops in schools to disseminate information about exogenous factors of liberal sexual attitudes and their associations with risky sexual behaviors. Students may be informed of the protective measures of sexual activities and forewarned about the negative health consequences of risky sexual behaviors. Although majority of the students are supportive of school-based SHE, students who are male, liberal in sexual attitudes, low in religiosity and spirituality showed negative attitudes toward school-based SHE. To facilitate effective implementation of school-based SHE, educators may need to spend special effort on students who are less supportive of school-based SHE. Negative influence on attitudes toward SHE may be addressed before teaching specific sexual health topics.

Sexual Self-Concept and Psychological Functioning of Women With a History of Childhood Sexual Abuse in Hong Kong.

Sexual self-concept (SSC) is an important component of health that is closely associated with the well-being of survivors of child sexual abuse (CSA). Compared with non-CSA respondents, SSC of CSA survivors was deleteriously affected, resulting in ineffective psychological functioning (negative self-evaluation, psychological ill-health, and difficulties in interpersonal relationships). Negative SSC (sexual anxiety, sexual depression, and sexual fear) played a significant role in mediating the adverse effects of CSA on psychological functioning. Future studies may recruit a sample with greater variation in CSA characteristics and use externalizing problems as outcome measures to cross-validate findings of this study.

Religiosity and psychological well-being of older women in Hong Kong.

The purpose of this study was to examine the religious belief of the elderly women in Hong Kong and how their life satisfaction and depressive symptoms were related to various dimensions of religiosity. Data based on a community sample of older women (N = 180, mean age = 74.2 years) indicated that majority of them (56.7%) reported beliefs in folk religion and ancestor worship. The Catholics and Buddhists appeared to enjoy a better mental health status than did the Protestants, which seemed to be mediated by better family supports and physical health condition. Objective measure of attendance at religious activities was not related to psychological well-being. In contrast, subjective feelings that religious faith was a source of strength and comfort, and that it would help in times of difficulty were significantly associated with psychological well-being.

The effectiveness of a cardiac rehabilitation program on self-efficacy and exercise tolerance.

This study evaluates the effectiveness of graded physical exercise on self-efficacy and exercise tolerance among a group of cardiac patients (N = 43). These patients were aged from 41 years to 82 years (mean age = 63.5 years, SD = 10.0 years). Results of the study show that efficacy of physical activity was significantly associated with exercise tolerance. After a 3-month rehabilitation with graded physical exercise, both efficacy of activity and exercise tolerance were significantly enhanced. The enhancement was relatively independent of patients' gender, age, education, and diagnostic category. Limitations of the study are discussed and future research suggested.

A cross-validation study of nurses' attitudes and commitment to organ donation in Hong Kong.

This study examined the attitudes and commitment to posthumous organ donation among a group of nurses (N=314) in a teaching hospital in Hong Kong. Attitude was operationally defined by a self-report measure of favorable or unfavorable feelings and beliefs about organ donation, whereas commitment was defined by having signed a donor card. Consistent with findings reported in the West, nurses who exhibited favorable attitudes towards organ donation were of greater proportion than those who had signed a donor card. Younger and unmarried nurses were more likely to commit to posthumous organ donation. More than half (55%) of the nurses were undecided about commitment to organ donation, but most of them were likely to sign a donor card. Principal component analysis confirmed the conceptual structure of the Organ Donation Attitude Scale developed by Parisi and Katz (Health Psychol. 5 (1986) 565-580). Reliability of the factor scores (Humanitarian and moral conviction, Fears of bodily mutilation, and Fears of medical neglect) was satisfactory (Cronbach alpha ranged from 0.80 to 0.86). Fears of bodily mutilation were most significantly related to unwillingness to commit to organ donation. Implications of the findings for nursing education are discussed and suggestions for future research made.