The Effects of an Education/Behavioral Intervention on Knowledge, Perceived Risk and Self-Efficacy for Sexually Transmitted Infections in Women.

The purpose of this research study was to test the effects of an education/behavioral intervention on knowledge, perceived risk, and self-efficacy for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) prevention in women. Additionally, the instruments that measured knowledge of sexually transmitted infections and perceived risk were tested for reliability. Instruments used to test the effects of the intervention at pretest and following the intervention included the Sexually Transmitted Infection Knowledge Survey (Johnson-Mallard, 2002); the Perceived Risk for Sexually Transmitted Infection Survey (Johnson-Mallard, 2002); and the Sexual Self-Efficacy Survey (Heather & Pinkerton, 1998). Participants included 89-women seeking family planning services, sexually transmitted infection services or prenatal care at three county health units. Participants were randomly assigned to a treatment (n = 47) or control (n = 42) group. The treatment group received the theory based STI education/behavioral intervention. A logic model and Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory were used to test the effects of an education/behavioral intervention on decreasing individual exposure to sexually transmitted infections by increasing individual knowledge, perceived risk, and self-efficacy. Data were analyzed using Analysis of Variance. Significantly differences from pretest to posttest was obtained between the experimental and control group on knowledge of STIs F (1, 87) = 73.66, p \u3c .001. Test results for the effect of the education/behavioral intervention on sexual self-efficacy resulted in significance difference between groups at posttest on refusing sexual intercourse F (1, 87) = 50.18, p \u3c .001; questioning potential sex partners F (1, 87) = 15.48, p \u3c .001; and condom use F (1, 87) = 19.60 p \u3c .001; indicating the brief (30-minute) education/behavioral intervention had an effect on the experimental group. However, posttest on STI perceived risk for women receiving the education/behavioral intervention did not approach significance F (1, 87) = .02 p \u3c .901 indicating the education/behavioral intervention did not have a statistically significant effect on the experimental group. The findings of the study indicate the importance of healthcare providers reinforcing STI information during clinical encounters with women. Women need to understand that STIs contribute greatly to morbidity associated with reproductive health