Journal of Education and Community Health
Year:2017 | Volume:3 | Issue:4|Papers Count:8

Background and Objectives: Based on different studies, substance abuse is one of the health problems in the Iranian society. The prevalence of substance abuse is on a growing trend; moreover, the age of the onset of substance abuse has declined to early adolescence and even lower. Regarding this, the pesent study aimed to develop a family-based early-onset substance abuse prevention program for children (i.e., My Family-Study) by using intervention mapping approach.Materials and Methods: This study descirbes the research protocol during which the intervention mapping approach was used as a framework to develop My Family-Study. In this study, six steps of intervention mapping were completed. Interviews with experts and literature review fulfilled the need assessment. In the second step, the objectivs were rewritten based on the intersection of the performance goals and the determinants associated with the matrices. After designing the program and planning the implementation of the intervention, the evaluation of the program was accomplished.Results: The use of intervention mapping approach facilitated the develop-pment of a systematic as well as theory- and evidence-based program. Moreover, this approach was helful in the determination of outcomes, practical objectives, change of determinants, theoretical methods, practical application, intervention, dissemination, and evaluation.Conclusions: As the findings of this study indicated, the intervention mapping provided a systematic as well as theory- and evidence-based approach to develop a health promotion program with long-lasting quality.

Background and Objectives: Training brucellosis preventive behaviors is mandatory to reduce the incidence of this disease in at-risk groups. Thus, the aim of this study was to determine the effectiveness of an educational program based on Health Belief Model (HBM) on brucellosis preventive behaviors among traditional ranchers in rural areas of Hamadan Province, Iran.Materials and Methods: This interventional study was performed with a pretest-posttest design and a control group in 2016. The participants were traditional ranchers of the villages of Hamadan Province, who are identified at high risk for brucellosis. In this study, 70 ranchers were randomly selected and divided into experimental and control groups. The data was collected using a questionnaire consisting of demographic information, knowledge, behavior checklist, and HBM constructs. The experimental group received the educational intervention during 4 sessions with film screening and the use of video and text messages. Data was analyzed using chi-square, Fisher’s exact test, independent t -test, and paired t -test in SPSS.Results: After the intervention, the mean scores of knowledge, perceived susceptibility, perceived severity, perceived benefits, perceived self-efficacy, and cues to action and prevention of brucellosis in the experimental group had significantly increased in comparison to the control group (P<0.001).Conclusions: Results of this study showed that the educational intervention based on the Health Belief Model could promote brucellosis preventive behaviors among traditional ranchers.

Background and Objectives: The foundation of any society is built upon marriage and starting a family. However, marriage is a complex and challenging issue, success in which is hinged upon various factors such as attitude towards marriage. This study was carried out to evaluate the effect of training the 9 Enneagram personality types on spouse selection criteria and attitude towards marriage in single grils.Materials and Methods: This quasi-experimental study with a pretest-posttest design and control group was performed on all the third-grade high school female students in the District 14 of Tehran, Iran, during 2015-16 academic calendar. The subjects were selected through multistage cluster sampling from two schools in the mentioned district. A total of 30 students were selected and randomly divided into control and experimental groups. The data collection tools consisted Preference Criteria of Spouse Selection Inventory (PCSSI) and Marital Attitude Scale (MAS). The intervention group received ten 90-minute sessions (once a week). To analyze the data, analysis of covariance was run in SPSS, version 22.Results: After the intervention, there was a significant difference between the intervention and control groups in terms of overall attitude and cynical attitude towards marriage and the general, procedural, and content spouse selection criteria (P<0.05). However, there was no significant difference between the two groups with respect to idealistic attitude towards marriage at the post-intervention stage (P>0.05).Conclusions: According to the results, training the 9 Enneagram personality types was effective in marital attitude and spouse selection criteria of girls.

Background and Objectives: Despite the importance of pap smear in reducing the incidence of cervical cancer and its death, this cancer is still one of the leading causes of death among women around the world. Accordingly, in this study, we aimed to determine the effect of an educational program based on the protection motivation theory on Pap smear screening behavior.Materials and Methods: This quasi-experimental study was conducted on 200 women referring to Fasa health centers, Fasa, Iran. The participants were randomized into experimental and control groups (n=100 per group). The data collection tool, which consisted of demographic data and protection motivation theory constructs, was completed by both groups before and 2 months after the intervention. For the experimental group, the educational program was implemented during 4 sessions using group discussions and educational pamphlets. To analyze the data, chi-square test, independent t -test, and paired t -test were run in SPSS, version 22.Results: After the intervention, the mean scores of protection motivation theory constructs significantly increased in the experimental group compared to the control group (P<0.001). However, no significant difference was noted between the two groups regarding the response efficacy construct at the post-intervention stage (P=0.552). In addition, after the intervention, the rate of conducting Pap smear test significantly incremented in the experimental group (58%).Conclusions: The study results revealed the effectiveness of the educational intervention based on protection motivation theory in promoting Pap smear screening behavior. Therefore, we recommend designing educational interventions based on this theory to promote public health, especially in women.

Background and Objectives: Health literacy is associated with smoking status. Given the growing prevalence of smoking and the role model of the medical students in Iran, this study aimed to determine the relationship of health literacy with knowledge and attitudes about the harms of cigarette smoking.Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional and correlational study was conducted on 340 dormitory students of Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, in 2016. The study population was selected through single-stage cluster sampling method. The data were collected using the Heath Literacy for Iranian Adults (HELIA) questionnaire for urban population aged between 18-65 years and a researcher-made questionnaire measuring the knowledge and attitudes about the harms of smoking. Data analysis was performed through SPSS version 16, using descriptive statistics, Chi-square test, and Pearson correlation coefficient.Results: According to the results, the mean scores of health literacy, knowledge, and attitude were 70.52±14.12, 16.65±1.62, and 53.03±10.33, respectively (out of 100). There was a significant direct relationship between the knowledge and attitudes about smoking hazards (P<0.001). Similarly, health literacy was directly correlated with knowledge and attitudes about smoking harms (P<0.001).Conclusions: Regarding the relationship of health literacy with knowledge and attitudes about smoking hazards, future studies are recommended to investigate the effect of different levels of health literacy on smoking.

Background and Objectives: Research has shown that 80% of people’s success is associated with emotional intelligence-related skills. Accordingly, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of emotional intelligence training based on social support theory on assuaging perceived stress and promoting communication skills among male high school students of Hamadan, Iran.Materials and Methods: In this experimental study, 100 male high school students in Hamadan, Iran, were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups (n=50 students in each group). The data collection tools included the Social Support Scale, Schutte Self-Report Emotional Intelligence Test, Burton’s Communication Skills, and Cohen’s Perceived Stress Scale. The intervention included five sessions for students and two sessions for parents and school teachers, which was performed for one month in the experimental group. The experimental and control groups were separately followed up one and two months after the intervention. Data were analyzed with SPSS, version 16 and, using Chi-square test, paired t-test, and repeated measures analysis of variance.Results: The results revealed significant differences between the mean scores of the two groups regarding the theoretical constructs of social support, emotional intelligence, communication skills, and perceived stress (P<0.05).Conclusions: Emotional intelligence training based on social support was effective in reducing stress and promoting communication skills of students; therefore, the use of this theoretical framework for designing and evaluating educational interventions is suggested.

Background and Objectives: Parenting styles are one of the most important factors in shaping adolescents’ behaviors and personality. Therefore, we aimed to predict internet addiction and social anxiety based on parenting styles.Materials and Methods: This descriptive and correlational study was performed in 400 high school students of Sabzevar, Iran, in 2015. The participants were selected using multi-stage cluster sampling method. The data were collected using Yang’s Internet Addiction Test (IAT), Social Anxiety Scale (SAS-A), and Baumrind’s Parenting Styles Questionnaire. To analyze the data, Pearson correlation coefficient and multiple regression were run in SPSS, version 22.Results: We found a significant positive correlation between the authoritarian and permissive parenting styles and Internet addiction (r=0.102, r=0.210, respectively) and social anxiety (r=0.576, r=0.517, respectively). Moreover, a significant negative correlation was observed between the authoritative parenting style and Internet addiction and social anxiety (r=-0.291 and r=-0.263, respectively). In addition, multiple regression analysis reflected that the parenting styles could predict Internet addiction and social anxiety, and they explained respectively 39% and 35% of the variance.Conclusions: According to the results, adopting proper educational methods and implementing practical plans can predict Internet addiction and improve positive relationships among individuals.

Background and Objectives: The number of patients inflicted with AIDS is on a growing trend in Iran, and one of the routes of disease transmission is the infection of sharps that are used for different people without disinfection. This study was designed to evaluate the performance of male barbers regarding AIDS prevention based on the Health Belief Model in Fasa, Iran.Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2014 on 220 male barbers working in Fasa, Iran. The participants were chosen through random multi-stage sampling. The data were collected using a researcher-made questionnaire including demographic data, knowledge, and constructs of the Health Belief Model using self-report. To analyze the data, linear regression was run in SPSS, version 18.Results: Our findings showed that among the participants, knowledge was good, perceived sensitivity was moderate, perceived severity was low, perceived benefits were high, perceived barriers were low, and practice was at a good level. Knowledge, perceived sensitivity, and perceived benefits constructs were predictors of barbers' performance in preventing AIDS. In general, 31.5% of variance predicted performance variables.Conclusions: Regarding the results of this study, by appropriate planning for raising awareness, perceived sensitivity, and perceived benefits regarding AIDS, barbers’ performance can be enhances, which is essential for preventing and controlling AIDS.