ISSN: 2639-2178
Authors: Krumov KD , Larsen KS , Schneider JF , Liu J , Krumova AK , Widodo E , Gungov AL , Juhasz M , Garvanova MZ , Milburn JT , Kumar S and Repaczki R
The current study analyzes the impact of age life cycles on the Health Locus of Control construct in different cultural contexts during the Covid-19 pandemic. The purpose is to examine whether different age categories impact the health behavior of individuals and change the Internal Health Locus of Control (IHLC), Powerful Others Health Locus of Control (PHLC), and Chance Health Locus of Control (CHLC) during the outbreak in Asia and Europe of the Covid-19 pandemic. A total of 2617 respondents aged 18–80 from Asia and Europe completed an online version of the Multidimensional Health Locus of Control Scale – Form A. To examine the impact of age on the Health locus of control construct, the study participants were divided into three age groups: up to 35, from 36 to 50, and over 50. Data analysis reveals that along with the influence of cultural context on the Health locus of control construct, age periods also impact and change IHLC, PHLC, and CHLC levels. Respondents from Asia, under the age of 35 and in mature adulthood, have a strong tendency to rely on themselves (IHLC) in the regulation of their health behavior. Europeans, compared to Asians, have consistently lower IHLC levels throughout the life cycle. Results also yield differences in relation to PHLC: Europeans, compared to Asians, are less likely to trust powerful others at an early age, while in adulthood, the health control by powerful others increases dramatically. Data analysis also shows that young Asians tend to rely on chance, fate, or luck (CHLC), however, this tendency is not observed among young Europeans. The opposite trend is observed with age: while in Asian culture levels of CHLC decrease with age, in European contexts, these levels increase.
Keywords: Age; Asia; Covid-19; Cross-Cultural; Differences; Europe; Health Locus of Control
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