Effectiveness of peer-led education on knowledge and attitude among adolescents regarding road safety

• Published in: Indian journal of community medicine Vol. 47; no. 3; pp. 356 - 359
• Main Authors: Masilamani, Nightingale, Kothandan, Poornima, Basker, Mona, Immanuel, Shandrila
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Chandigarh Wolters Kluwer India Pvt. Ltd 01-07-2022; Medknow Publications and Media Pvt. Ltd; Medknow Publications & Media Pvt. Ltd; Wolters Kluwer - Medknow; Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications
• Subjects: adolescents; attitude; Attitudes; Community health care; Education; effectiveness; Health education; Knowledge; Methods; Original; Peer tutoring; peer-led education; road safety; Safety and security measures; Teenagers; Traffic accidents & safety; Traffic safety; Youth; India; effectiveness; peer-led education; Adolescents; road safety; attitude; knowledge
• ISSN: 0970-0218; 1998-3581
• DOI: 10.4103/ijcm.ijcm_1021_21

Background and Objective: Children and adolescents are the most vulnerable groups for road traffic injuries in India (39%). Hourly, forty youngsters die in road traffic crashes. Road safety education aims at reducing this burden. Peer-led education (PLE) is a credible approach influencing students to modify their behavior positively. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of PLE in terms of knowledge and attitude toward road safety among adolescents. Methodology: A single-group pretest-posttest design among 113 adolescents was conducted using a two-stage sampling technique. Ten selected and trained student peers provided PLE on road safety to 103 fellow students using a teaching aid. Effectiveness of PLE on knowledge and attitude was assessed pre- and postintervention. Results: Post PLE, the mean knowledge score of subjects increased from 10.5 to 17.5 with a significant mean difference of −6.9 (P < 0.001). The mean attitude score of subjects had increased from 46.7 to 48.1. A positive statistically significant correlation (P = 0.04) between knowledge and attitude and associations between certain sociodemographic variables were noted. Conclusion: Knowledge and attitude of subjects regarding road safety improved after PLE. Innovative teaching methods can be used to promote healthy behaviors among adolescents.