Identifying the social capital influencing diabetes control in Japan

The number of patients with diabetes is increasing in Japan. Recently, Social capital (SC) has received increasing attention as a factor influencing health conditions. In the US, the relation between SC and diabetes control has been reported, but little attention has been paid to this connection in Japan. Three SC questionnaires, entitled “trust in people in a community,” “social support,” and “social relationships,” were constructed. The subjects were adult patients with type 2 diabetes. Information on diabetic conditions, such as HbA1c, self-attainment of diet (SAD) and exercise (SAE), and complications were collected. The reliability coefficients for the SC questionnaire and factor analysis of SC were conducted. Multiple and logistic regressions were used to identify the influence of SC on diabetes control. Sixty-five patients participated in this study. The questionnaires “social support” and “social relationships” were adopted to measure Cronbach alpha coefficient. Factor analysis extracted the factors “hope to be helped (HH),” “participation in favorite events (PFE),” “sense of belonging (SB),” and “social movement (SM).” HbA1c was positively correlated with HH (P < 0.05). SAD and SAE were negatively correlated with HH (P < 0.05). SAE was positively correlated with PFE (P < 0.05). PFE reduced complication risks (P < 0.05). HH includes amae, which negatively affected self-efficacy that correlates with diabetes control. Therefore, higher HH might cause higher levels of HbA1c. PFE reduces distress and contributes to glucose control. Reduced distress through PFE might prevent complications. HH and PFE were identified as SC that influences diabetes control.