Authors : Rouhi Afkari, Abdollah Taheri, Hamid Reza Galavi, Eghbal Sekhavati, Elham Damanni and Fatemeh Lotfi Mola
Abstract: A theory-based education program can increase the participation of elderly people in terms of good nutritional behaviors. This study aimed at assessing the effect of an education program based on Protection Motivation Theory (PMT) on improving nutritional performance of elderly people. This quasi-experimental study was conducted on 200 elderly people over 60 years of age in the city of Hamadan in early April in 2015. The PMT-based questionnaire and a checklist of food groups were modified based on Iranian culture. According to experts, the questionnaire received adequate scores in terms of CVR and CVI within the acceptable range and its Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was calculated by 83%. The education program was conducted in the form of lectures and group discussions via brainstorming method and the data were collected before and 2 months after the implementation of the intervention. The data were also analyzed using measures of central tendency, dispersion, independent and paired t-tests, one-way ANOVA, Chi-square and correlation coefficient at a 95% confidence level. Following the educational intervention, the results of the paired t-test showed that the mean scores of knowledge, behavior, protection-motivation, fear, perceived severity and the items of food frequency questionnaire had increased significantly in the experimental group, unlike the control group, compared to the mean scores before the educational intervention (p<0/001). This study revealed that the PMT-based education program had an effect on the improvement of nutritional performance of the elderly people; however, further investigations in other age and gender groups as well as using other educational methods were also recommended.
Rouhi Afkari, Abdollah Taheri, Hamid Reza Galavi, Eghbal Sekhavati, Elham Damanni and Fatemeh Lotfi Mola, 2016. The Effect of an Education Program Based Onprotection Motivation Theory (PMT) on Improving Nutritional Performance of Elderly People. Research Journal of Medical Sciences, 10: 97-101.