| ORIGINAL ARTICLE |
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| Year : 2019 | Volume
: 8
| Issue : 6 | Page : 2012-2016 |
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Relationships between nutrition-related knowledge, attitude, and self-efficacy among adolescents: A community-based survey
Shantanu Sharma, Faiyaz Akhtar, Rajesh Kumar Singh, Sunil Mehra
Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health Division, MAMTA Health Institute for Mother and Child, Delhi, India
Correspondence Address:
Dr. Shantanu Sharma
B-5, Greater Kailash Enclave-2, Delhi -110 048
India
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
DOI: 10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_217_19
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Introduction: Millions of adolescents are facing the burden of malnutrition in India, and the sociocultural context of nutrition poses challenges while addressing this burden. This study aimed to assess: (a) the determinants of knowledge, attitude, and self-efficacy scores and (b) the relationships between nutrition-related knowledge, attitude, and self-efficacy scores among adolescents in India. Methods: The community-based study was conducted among adolescents across three rural and three urban districts in India. This observational study employed a self-administered structured questionnaire containing information on demography, nutrition-related knowledge, attitude, and dietary self-efficacy. Differences in knowledge, attitude, and self-efficacy scores between sociodemographic variables were assessed using the t-test. Regression analysis was used to determine relationships between knowledge, attitude, and self-efficacy scores. Results: A total of 985 adolescents (44.5%) from rural areas and 1225 (55.5%) from urban slums participated. There were significant differences in knowledge, and self-efficacy scores between rural, urban inhabitants (P < 0.001), and adolescents with different grades of education (P < 0.001 for knowledge and P = 0.01 for self-efficacy). There were significant differences in knowledge and attitude scores among adolescents from non-backward and backward classes (P < 0.001 for knowledge and P = 0.02 for attitude) and those who were vegetarians and non-vegetarians (P = 0.002 for knowledge and P < 0.001 for attitude). The study demonstrated significant relationships between knowledge, attitude, and self-efficacy scores (P < 0.001). Conclusion: Nutrition-related knowledge, attitude, and self-efficacy scores are determinants of dietary behavior and are inter-related. Community-based interventions targeting to improve the nutritional status of adolescents should focus on improving self-efficacy besides the other two determinants.
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