Quantitative Definition of Low-Health-Interest Populations by Using Regression Trees: A Nationwide Internet Survey in Japan

Yoko Nishizawa (), Takuya Yamada, Kumi Sugimoto, Chie Ozawa, Takahiro Tabuchi, Hirono Ishikawa and Yoshiharu Fukuda
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Yoko Nishizawa: Teikyo University Graduate School of Public Health, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-8605, Japan
Takuya Yamada: Teikyo University Graduate School of Public Health, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-8605, Japan
Kumi Sugimoto: Center for Occupational and Environmental Health, Teikyo University, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-8605, Japan
Chie Ozawa: Division of Cancer Information Service, National Cancer Center Japan Institute for Cancer Control, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104-0045, Japan
Takahiro Tabuchi: Cancer Control Center, Osaka International Cancer Institute, Chuo-ku, Osaka 541-8567, Japan
Hirono Ishikawa: Teikyo University Graduate School of Public Health, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-8605, Japan
Yoshiharu Fukuda: Teikyo University Graduate School of Public Health, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-8605, Japan

IJERPH, 2024, vol. 21, issue 8, 1-14

Abstract: Background: Reducing health disparities is a public health issue. Identification of low-health-interest populations is important, but a definition of people with low health interest has not yet been established. We aimed to quantitatively define low-health-interest populations. Methods: A nationwide cross-sectional internet survey was conducted in 2022. We compiled regression tree (RT) analyses with/without adjustment for age, sex, and socioeconomic status with the 12-item Interest in Health Scale (IHS, score range 12–48) as an explanatory variable and the 10 composite health behaviors as a dependent variable. We defined the first IHS branching condition from the root node as a lower-health-interest group and the terminal node with the lowest health behaviors as the lowest-health-interest group. Results: The mean IHS value of 22,263 analyzed participants was 32.1 ± 5.6; it was higher in females and in those who were aged over 45 years, had a high education, a high income, or a spouse. The first branching condition was IHS 31.5, and the terminal node branched at 24.5, before/after adjustment for covariates. Conclusions: We determined the cutoff values of the IHS as <32 for a lower-health-interest group and <25 for the lowest-health-interest group. Using these cutoffs might enable us to reveal the characteristics of low-health-interest populations.

Keywords: health interest; health behavior; regression tree; interest in health scale; receiver operating characteristic curve (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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