Halk Sağlığı Hemşireliği Dergisi

Yazarlar: Kader MERT, Mahmut Esat HARMANCI

Konular:Halk ve Çevre Sağlığı

Anahtar Kelimeler:Atasözleri,Sağlık davranışları,Hemşirelik

Özet: Objective: Understanding cultural values is an important component of theories on behavioral change. The aim of the study is to examine current healthy lifestyle behaviors in the Turkish population in the context of cultural values through a review of well-known proverbs. Materials and Methods: The study is of qualitative design and encompasses a document review. The data for the study was drawn from the database of proverbs compiled by the Turkish Linguistic Society, which is the most comprehensive and updated such source; various Turkish idiom dictionaries were also used. The data collected were analyzed by descriptive analysis. Results: Proverbs that reflect people’s current perception of health and illness were examined such as: “perception of health” and “perception of illness.” Proverbs related to “health responsibility” were collected under two themes: “those that spoke of “fatalism” and those that referred to “resistance to change.” Proverbs in the context of health behavior in the population were examined under seven types of behavior, those having to do with “eating habits,” “physical activity,” “coping with stress,” “social support,” “safety,” “sleep,” and “hygiene”. Conclusion and recommendations: When the Turkish proverbs are examined; it is observed that they provide positive support to behaviors such as hygiene, sleeping, exercise and coping with stress; whereas behaviors including health responsibility, eating habits, safety, and social support are not always positively supported. Nurses should not overlook underlying cultural characteristics when working to promote positive health behaviors.

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