The decade of the '90s witnessed the emergence of health promotion as a national priority for all age groups. Despite the fact that Healthy People 2010 identified objectives for the nursing home population, little is known about factors that promote the practice of health-promoting behaviors by nursing home residents. This study examined the separate and combined contributions of personal and contextual influences on the practice of health-promoting behaviors by nursing home residents. One hundred eighty-four residents and 90 staff members from six nursing homes participated in this study. Using a modified version of contextual regression analysis, 57.8% of the variance in health-promoting lifestyle (HPL) behaviors was explained when all variables were entered into the equation. Personal influences explained a significant amount of variation (53.5%) in current HPL behaviors. These findings underscore the importance of looking at ways to support the efforts of nursing home residents to engage in the practice of health-promoting behaviors.
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