Application of Health Belief Model for the assessment of COVID-19 preventive behavior and its determinants among students: A structural equation modeling analysis

Abstract

Background COVID-19 is a new pandemic that poses a threat to people globally. In Ethiopia, where classrooms are limited, students are at higher risk for COVID-19 unless they take consistent preventative actions. However, there is a lack of evidence in the study area regarding student compliance with COVID-19 preventive behavior (CPB) and its predictors. Objective This study aimed to assess CPB and its predictors among students based on the perspective of the Health Belief Model (HBM). Method and materials A school-based cross-sectional survey was conducted from November to December 2020 to evaluate the determinants of CPB among high school students using a self-administered structured questionnaire. 370 participants were selected using stratified simple random sampling. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize data, and partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) analyses to evaluate the measurement and structural models proposed by the HBM and to identify associations between HBM variables. A T-value of > 1.96 with 95% CI and a P-value of < 0.05 were used to declare the statistical significance of path coefficients. Result A total of 370 students participated with a response rate of 92%. The median (interquartile range) age of the participants (51.9% females) was 18 (2) years. Only 97 (26.2%), 121 (32.7%), and 108 (29.2%) of the students had good practice in keeping physical distance, frequent hand washing, and facemask use respectively. The HBM explained 43% of the variance in CPB. Perceived barrier (β = - 0.15, p < 0.001) and self-efficacy (β = 0.51, p <0.001) were significant predictors of student compliance to CPB. Moreover, the measurement model demonstrated that the instrument had acceptable reliability and validity. Conclusion and recommendations COVID-19 prevention practice is quite low among students. HBM demonstrated adequate predictive utility in predicting CPBs among students, where perceived barriers and self-efficacy emerged as significant predictors of CPBs. According to the findings of this study, theory-based behavioral change interventions are urgently required for students to improve their prevention practice. Furthermore, these interventions will be effective if they are designed to remove barriers to CPBs and improve students’ self-efficacy in taking preventive measures.

Health beliefs and health anxiety as predictors of COVID-19 health behavior: Data from Serbia

“…A very small significance of susceptibility to the disease and the observed severity of the disease were obtained in an earlier study (Clark et al, 2020). Perceived barriers to preventive behavior were significant predictors of preventive behavior in other studies (Asmundson et al, 2001;Barakat & Kasemy, 2020;Karimy et al, 2021;Karl et al, 2021;Mahindarathne, 2021;Shahnazi et al, 2020;Shitu et al, 2022;Zewdie et al, 2022), as well as perceived benefits of preventive behavior (Barakat & Kasemy, 2020;Clark et al, 2020;Karimy et al, 2021;Karl et al, 2021;Mahindarathne, 2021;Vardavas et al, 2020;Zewdie et al, 2022). These results suggest that public information campaigns and the promotion of preventive health behavior in relation to COVID-19 should be designed to focus on clearly presenting the benefits that respondents derive from such behavior, as well as on reducing barriers to its implementation.…”

Predictive Model of Functional Exercise Compliance of Patients with Breast Cancer Based on Decision Tree

“…In the study of Shitu et al perceived barriers and self-efficacy were suggested as significant predictors of students’ compliance with COVID-19 preventive behavior. 28 Perceived barrier refer to one’s belief in the tangible and psychological costs of the advised behavior. 29 As the authors acknowledged, the biggest barrier for functional exercise was the lack of time.…”

School Nurses’ Perspectives on Health among School-Aged Children and Adolescents During the COVID-19 Pandemic

“… Dymecka et al (2021) believe that individuals with high SOC were better equipped to handle difficult situations, reducing their probability of developing stress. A cross-sectional study from Ethiopia used the health belief model to predict COVID-19 preventive behavior among adolescents and found that the model explained more than 40% of the COVID-19 preventive behavior ( Shitu et al., 2022 ). With this in mind, it is important to follow up on students who have developed stress and mental health problems during the pandemic to avoid negative consequences.…”