The Mediating Effect of Self-Efficacy on Health Literacy and Social Support in Young and Middle-Aged Patients with Coronary Heart Disease After PCI

Abstract

Objective

To investigate the mediating effect of self-efficacy in the relationship between social support and health literacy among young and middle-aged patients with coronary heart disease following PCI.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted on convenience samples of 325 young and middle-aged patients with coronary heart disease who underwent PCI within 1 to 3 months. The data were collected from the outpatient department of a tertiary general hospital in Wenzhou, China, between July 2022 and February 2023. The questionnaire format was utilized to gather data on demographic characteristics, social support, self-efficacy, and health literacy. A structural equation model was employed to establish and validate the pathways.

Results

The mean age of the patients included in the study was 45.32 years old, while their levels of health literacy, self-efficacy, and social support were 64.12±7.45, 27.71±4.23, and 65.53±6.43 respectively. Significant associations were observed between social support and health literacy in the CHD population, with self-efficacy playing a partial mediating role. Together, social support and self-efficacy accounted for 53.3% of the variance in health literacy. The Pearson correlation analysis revealed a significant positive association between health literacy and both social support (r = 0.390, P < 0.01) and self-efficacy (r = 0.471, P < 0.01).

Conclusion

Social support exerted a direct impact on health literacy and an indirect effect on health literacy through self-efficacy among patients with CHD.

Keywords:

• social support
• self-efficacy
• health literacy
• young and middle-aged patients
• coronary heart disease
• structural equation modelling

Ethical Approval

This study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of Directors of the Second Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, China (2022-K-77-02) in accordance with the principles outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki. Participants were informed that they could withdraw from or refuse participation at any time without penalty. All samples were deidentified prior to use.

Disclosure

The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.