Thesis Defence: The role of family support in diabetes prevention in rural and remote British Columbia

Kyra Braaten, supervised by Dr. Mary Jung, will defend their thesis titled “The role of family support in diabetes prevention in rural and remote British Columbia” in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Health and Exercise Sciences.

An abstract for Kyra Braaten’s thesis is included below.

Defences are open to all members of the campus community as well as the general public. Registration is not required for in person defences.

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ABSTRACT

Rural and remote populations in Canada face health disparities that increase their risk for developing type 2 diabetes (T2D; Public Health Agency of Canada, 2011; Roche et al., 2014). Locating, accessing, and being supported in making behaviour changes in line with T2D prevention guidelines are barriers for rural and remote populations in British Columbia (Keating et al., 2011; Locke et al., 2021 & Public Health Agency of Canada, 2011). A feasible form of support that may be available to these populations is family members as most self-management activities occur at home and are within the family network. Family involvement has been shown to influence adherence to diet and exercise; two health behaviours critical for preventing T2D (Mayberry et al., 2016; Johnson et al., 2013). The aim of this project was to understand how family involvement facilitates and discourages diet and exercise behaviours among individuals at risk of developing T2D living in rural and remote communities in British Columbia. Ten individuals (five family members and five individuals at risk of T2D) participated in separate semi-structured interviews exploring perceived supportive and unsupportive family behaviours related to diet and physical activity participation. Interviews were analyzed using the adapted Framework Method for dyadic analysis (Collaco et al., 2021) using an abductive approach. Perceived supportive and unsupportive behaviours were coded to the Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF; Michie et al., 2008) and Self and Family Management Framework (SFMF; Grey et al., 2015), and dyadic perspectives were thematically analyzed. Participants reported perceived supportive behaviours (129) and unsupportive behaviours (55). The most frequently coded TDF domains were social influence (199), and environmental context and resources (109). Motivation (114) was most frequently coded from the SFMF. Themes arising from the dyadic analysis included a need for partnership, modeling of healthy behaviours by family members, and differing views on helpful environments. These findings highlight the prevalence of family influence on health behaviours and suggest a need to involve family members in diabetes prevention programs. Addressing the most frequently coded domains from the TDF and concepts from the SFMF could improve the quality of family support in diet and physical activity participation leading to better health outcomes and diabetes prevention practices in rural and remote areas in British Columbia.