Nuriye Efe Ertürk, Neşe Bülbül
The higher levels of fatalism are associated with lower self-management. There are significant relationships between fatalism, diabetes self-management, and metabolic parameters. To effectively manage diabetes in Turkish society, healthcare professionals must question beliefs such as fatalism.
OBJECTIVE: The purpose of the study was to determine the relationship between fatalism, diabetes self-management, and diabetes-related metabolic parameters in Turkish society.
METHOD: This study is cross-sectional and correlational. The study was conducted with 244 adults with T2DM who presented to the endocrinology outpatient clinic at a public hospital between October 2024 and October 2025. Data were collected using a Participant Information Form, the Diabetes Fatalism Scale (DFS), and the Diabetes Self-Management Questionnaire (DSMQ).
RESULTS: The mean score of the DFS was 34.93 ± 4.65; the DSMQ was 5.80 ± 1.30. HbA1c showed a strong positive correlation with DFS (r = .70, p < .001, 95% CI [.63, .76]). DFS demonstrated a negative correlation with DSMQ total scores (r = -.25, p = .004, 95% CI [-.37, -.13]). Triglyceride levels were positively correlated with HbA1c (r = .17, p < .01), and negatively correlated with HDL (r = -.26, p < .001). Only 11.5% of participants had LDL levels below 55 mg/dL.
CONCLUSION: The higher levels of fatalism are associated with lower self-management. There are significant relationships between fatalism, diabetes self-management, and metabolic parameters. To effectively manage diabetes in Turkish society, healthcare professionals must question beliefs such as fatalism.