Effect of an Educational Intervention Based on Protection Motivation Theory on Preventing Cervical Cancer among Marginalized Women in West Iran

Document Type : Research Articles

Authors

1 Department of Public Health, School of Health, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamadan, Iran.

2 Behavioral Disorders and Substance Abuse Research Center, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamadan, Iran.

3 Department of Public Health, School of Health, Fasa University of Medical Sciences, Fasa, Iran.

4 Social Determinants of Health Research Center, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamadan, Iran.

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of an educational intervention to prevent cervical cancer
among marginalized Iranianwomen based on the Protection Motivation Theory (PMT) as a theoretical framework.
Methods: This quasi-experimental study was carried out on 143 women of Kermanshah City in western Iran during
2017. Participants were recruited through cluster and simple random sampling and randomly divided into experimental
(n=72) and control groups (n=71). All completed a self-administered questionnaire including PMT constructs and
demographic variables. An intervention over six sessions was then applied to the experimental group. Reassessment
was conducted three months after the intervention, with data was analyzed with SPSS-16 using chi-square, McNemar,
paired T- and independent T-tests. Results: The mean scores for the constructs of PMT, and cervical cancer screening
behavior showed no significant differences between the two groups before the intervention (P>0.05). The educational
manipulation had significant effects on the experimental groups’ average response for perceived vulnerability, perceived
severity, perceived reward, self-efficacy, response efficacy, response cost and protection motivation (all p < 0.001).
Also, the prevalence of regular Pap smear testing and referral to health centers were significantly increased after 3
months in the experimental (P=0.048), but notthe control group (P>0.05). Conclusions: The results show that applying
an educational intervention based on PMT might help prevent cervical cancer and improve regular Pap smear testing.

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Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
Volume 19, Issue 3
March 2018
Pages 755-761

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History

  • Receive Date: 21 September 2017
  • Revise Date: 12 December 2017
  • Accept Date: 03 February 2018

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