Health motivations and perceived barriers are determinants of self-care behaviour for the prevention of hypertension in a Malaysian community

Self-care behaviour is fundamental in preventing hypertension in the general population. According to the Health Belief Model, health beliefs and perceptions influence the success in adopting disease prevention strategies. This was a cross-sectional study conducted between 12 June 2020 to 26 July 2021. An online survey was administered via email and social media to Malaysians in the Selangor and Kuala Lumpur communities. Respondents were over 18 years old, without a formal diagnosis of hypertension. The survey evaluated hypertension knowledge, Health Belief Model constructs, self-care behaviour frequency, and motivators and barriers to self-care behaviour.