Self efficacy, social support and adherence to antiretroviral therapy among HIV/AIDs patients in Uganda

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to investigate the relationship between self-efficacy, social support, and adherence to antiretroviral therapy among HIV/AIDS patients in Uganda. The study was cross-sectional using quantitative methods in data collection and analysis. Non-random sampling, specifically purposive sampling, was used to select the 197 respondents (102 females and 95 males) that participated in the study. The researcher used the Generalized Self-efficacy scale to measure self-efficacy, The Multi-Dimensional Social Support Inventory to measure Social support, Morisky Medication Adherence Scale to measure Adherence, and HIV/AIDS context questions to get information on the respondent's status. Data analysis was done using SPSS version 23 applying linear regression analysis to investigate the relationships stated in the objectives below while Baron and Kenny's mediation was used to examine whether the relationship between self-efficacy and adherence is mediated by social support. The results indicated that there was a significant relationship between self-efficacy and social support (p<.001), there was no significant relationship between Self-efficacy and Adherence to antiretroviral therapy (p >.001) and there was no significant relationship between social support and Adherence (p >.001). However, after the inclusion of social support in the mediation model, Social support completely mediated the relationship between self-efficacy and adherence (p =.019). It was concluded that the relationship between self-efficacy and adherence is dependent on the mediation of social support. Therefore, social support can explain the influence of self-efficacy on adherence to medication and may be a key target for interventions to improve disease management and self-care behaviors in HIV/AIDS patients.