Influencing the Personal Meaning of Diabetes: Research and Practice

Abstract
Diabetes patient education involves the cognitive, psycho motor, and affective domains. This paper focuses on the influence diabetes patient education has on how people feel about having diabetes and what it means to them. Our research suggests that diabetes patient education can contribute to more positive attitudes about diabetes and that diabetes educators should address the affective domain directly. Strategies for influencing the personal meaning of diabetes are presented and discussed.