Date of Award

Summer 8-2016

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Educational Studies and Research

Committee Chair

Lilian Hill

Committee Chair Department

Educational Studies and Research

Committee Member 2

Thomas Lipscomb

Committee Member 2 Department

Educational Studies and Research

Committee Member 3

Richard Mohn

Committee Member 3 Department

Educational Studies and Research

Committee Member 4

Kyna Shelley

Committee Member 4 Department

Educational Studies and Research

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to determine if health literacy was a moderator in the relationship between diabetes knowledge and diabetes outcomes, and explore the relationship between diabetes knowledge and health literacy. The target population included adults living in Mississippi with a diagnosis of diabetes at any point in life. A pilot study was performed to determine if the Functional Communicative Critical Health Literacy scales (FCCHL) and the Spoken Knowledge in Low Literacy in Diabetes scale (SKILLD) were appropriate for use in a population of adults in Mississippi with a diagnosis of diabetes. Participants for the pilot study were recruited via Facebook pages belonging to diabetes- related organizations in Mississippi. Internal consistency was measured using Kuder Richardson coefficient and coefficient alpha to determine if FCCHL and SKILLD were reliable. Bivariate correlations were used to determine if FCCHL and SKILLD were valid. The pilot study revealed SKILLD and FCCHL were valid and reliable methods of measuring diabetes knowledge and health literacy.In the research study, participants were recruited for the research study via recognized and accredited diabetes self-management programs in Mississippi. In the research study, validation and reliability testing were performed for FCCHL and SKILLD using Kuder Richardson coefficient, coefficient alpha, and bivariate correlations. Hierarchical linear regression followed by structure coefficients were used to determine if health literacy was a moderator in the relationship between diabetes knowledge and health literacy, and explore relationships between diabetes knowledge, health literacy, and diabetes outcomes. FCCHL was determined to be a valid and reliable method of measuring health literacy, and SKILLD was determined to be a valid but not reliable method of measuring diabetes knowledge. It was determined that health literacy was not a moderator in the relationship between diabetes knowledge and diabetes outcomes. When predicting diabetes outcomes using total health literacy, diabetes knowledge, and an interaction variable (diabetes knowledge*total health literacy), it was determined that total health literacy was the strongest predictor in the model. When predicting diabetes outcomes using functional health literacy, communicative health literacy, critical health literacy, and diabetes knowledge, among these variables critical health literacy was the strongest predictor in the model. Findings of this research imply total health literacy and critical health literacy are important predictors for diabetes outcomes.

ORCID ID

0000-0002-5982-3621

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