Training Based on Orem's Model on Knowledge, Attitude and Self-efficacy of Mothers in Preventing Domestic Accidents

Accidents can happen to children more than other age groups. Given their specific behavioral and physiological traits, children require care on the part of adults. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of two educational methods based on Orem’s self-care model, i.e. storytelling and lecturing, on knowledge, attitude and self-efficacy of mothers of children 1 to 59 months in terms of domestic accidents prevention. This study was conducted on 60 mothers of 1- to 59-month children in Birjand. The educational interventions through storytelling and lecturing were performed in 4 sessions with 30 participants in either of the two groups. Knowledge, attitude, and self-efficacy of the mothers were evaluated by a researcher-made questionnaire both before and after the intervention. The data were analyzed by chi-square, independent t test and paired t test at α = 0.05 level. The age means of mothers in the lecture and storytelling groups were 28.36±4 and 29.63±6 years and those of children were 25.46 ± 17 and 20.26 ± 16 months respectively. The difference between the two groups was not significant in this regard. Following the lecturing intervention, the total mean scores of knowledge, attitude and self-efficacy increased respectively from 15 ± 1.6 to 20 ± 1.5 (P < 0.001), 93.8 ± 9 to 101 ± 7 (P = 0.001), and 59 ± 5.3 to 61.3 ± 5.4 (P = 0.02). Similarly, in the storytelling group, the mean scores before and after the intervention increased respectively from 12.8 ± 2.7 to 19.4 ± 1.6 (P < 0.001) for knowledge, from 92.4 ± 12 and 98 ± 9.3 (P = 0.03) for attitude, and from 54.4 ± 5.5 to 57.7 ± 6.3 (P = 0.001) for self-efficacy. Mean score changes of knowledge for mothers in the story-telling group (4.9 ± 1.6) was significantly greater than that of the lecture group (6.5±2) (P = 0.002). However, there were no significant differences between the two methods in terms of attitude and self-efficacy mean score changes. In teaching the principles of domestic accidents prevention to children, both lecturing and storytelling approaches proved effective. Although there was no significant difference between the two groups in attitude and self-efficacy scores, storytelling could contribute to higher levels of knowledge than lecturing.