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Diabetes in Urban African Americans: Assessment of Diabetes-Specific Locus of Control in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes

PURPOSE This study was conducted to examine the applicability and relationship to glycemic control of the Diabetes Locus of Control (DLC) Scales in a low-literacy, economically deprived, African American population with type 2 diabetes. METHODS The DLC Scales were administered orally to African American patients with type 2 diabetes who had been referred to the diabetes unit of a large urban public hospital. Reliability, interscale correlations, and associations with patient characteristics were compared with those originally obtained for a better educated, predominately Caucasian population. RESULTS The structure and correlates of the DLC Scales in the African American population were more similar than different from those originally obtained from a primarily well-educated, Caucasian population. However, comprehension of some items was difficult for up to 10% of the low-literacy population. A significant relationship was found between belief in chance and both glycemic control at the 6-month follow-up and the change in glycemic control over time. CONCLUSIONS Although the DLC Scales operate similarly in an urban African American population with limited education, further modification is needed to enhance the prediction of glycemic control and provide direction for developing targeted interventions.