Perceived Barriers to Rural Elderly Women’s Health-Promoting Behaviors: An Ecological Perspective

This study multidimensionally examines rural elderly women’s subjective barriers to practicing health-promoting behaviors. Twenty-six rural elderly women participated in three focus group interviews. Content analysis and a qualitative research method were used. The results, based on an ecological model, show that the implementation of health-promoting behaviors in rural elderly women was comprehensively related to intrapersonal (functional decline, passive attitude, and lack of implementation), interpersonal (lack of social support), community (restrictive conditions, accessibility issues, and lack of infrastructure), and public policy (lack of policy support) factors. Interventions addressing each factor can help reduce or eliminate the perceived barriers to health-promoting behaviors through interactions. Our findings can contribute to the development of health-promoting programs focused specifically on the socialization of rural elderly women and community-centered health policies in the future.