Self-rated health in adolescence: A multifactorial composite

Abstract

Background and aims: Self-rated health is an important health predictor, and it has only rarely been studied in adolescents. This study examined the relationships between self-rated health and a broad spectrum of structural, medical, psychological, and social variables. The association between these variables and negative health rating through to good health rating versus good to very good health rating was also compared. Methods: Analyses were based on cross-sectional data from the Young-HUNT II study in Norway. A total of 2,800 students aged 16 to 20 years participated, with a response rate of 81%. Separate logistic regression analyses for each gender were performed for a broad set of independent variables with self-rated health as the dependent variable. The effect of the variables at the negative (poor/not good) and positive (very good) ends of the scale were estimated and compared. Results: Self-rated health in adolescence was significantly associated with a broad spectrum of independent variables reflecting medical, social, and personal factors. The associations were also present in multivariate analyses controlling for the interrelations between the independent variables. The negative and positive ends of the scale were affected in much the same way. The association with general well-being was especially strong. Conclusions: Adolescents conceptualize health as a construct related to medical, psychological, social, and lifestyle factors. Positive rating of health was affected in a similar manner to negative rating. However, the absolute importance of hampering positive health may be greater because of the higher prevalence of such health ratings.