The effect of health education based on health belief model (HBM) for promoting preventive behavior of tooth decay among the boy students, who are in five-grade in the primary school

To determine the effect of health education based on health belief model (HBM) for promoting preventive behavior of tooth decay among the boy students, who are in five-grade in the primary school in Dezfool in 2009-2010. In this experimental study, 150 students were randomly allocated in the experimental)n=75) and control groups)n=75). After need assessment based on health belief model, suitable educational intervention was designed and implemented for the experimental group. The data were collected by the questionnaire. Two groups were followed-up one-month after completion of intervention. Finally, the collected data were analyzed by SPSS software (version 15). There were no significant differences in demographic factors and constructs of model between the two groups before intervention, self efficacy and preventive behavior of tooth decay (P<0.05) between the two groups after intervention. After intervention, there were no significant differences between the two groups in the other constructs of model (perceived benefits, perceived barriers and cues to action). Our findings showed that educational intervention based on health belief model may be an effective method for promoting preventive behavior of tooth decay in students.