Factors affecting safe pesticide-use behaviors among farm plant agriculturists in northeastern Thailand.

BACKGROUND: Pesticide poisoning is a major public health problem in Thailand and is the result of intensive inappropriate and unsafe use of pesticides. This analytical cross-sectional study aimed to determine the factors affecting safe pesticide-use behaviors among farm plant agriculturists in northeastern Thailand. METHODS: The study sample included 427 farm plant agriculturists in Loei Province, northeastern Thailand. Individuals were randomly selected by a multistage random sampling technique. The following data were collected via a self-administered questionnaire consisting of 8 parts: (1) sociodemographic characteristics, (2) knowledge about pesticide use, (3) perceived severity of impact from pesticide use among farm plant agriculturists, (4) perceived susceptibility to pesticide use, (5) perceived self-efficacy in the modification of safe pesticide-use behaviors, (6) perceived outcome of the modification of safe pesticide-use behaviors, (7) social support, and (8) safe pesticide-use behaviors. Frequencies, percentages, means, standard deviations, and multiple regression analyses were employed for data analysis. RESULTS: The majority of participants (79.4%) had high scores for safe pesticide-use behaviors among farm plant agriculturists (scores of 112-150). Factors that significantly affected safe pesticide-use behaviors included knowledge about pesticide use (ß = 0.282), social support (ß = 0.217), reading information from pesticide labels before pesticide use (ß = 0.207), perceived self-efficacy (ß = 0.186), female sex (ß = -0.140), rice farmer status (ß = 0.129), corn farmer status (ß = 0.127), perceived susceptibility (ß = 0.126), having received information from the internet (ß = -0.124), and perceived severity (ß = -0.098). Together, these 10 factors were found to explain 32.5% of the safe pesticide-use behaviors among farm plant agriculturists. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicate that there is a need to increase the number of promotional activities related to the safe use of pesticides through social support and training, with the aim of increasing the overall level of knowledge, perceived self-efficacy, perceived susceptibility, and modification of the perceived impact severity of pesticide use. Thus, relevant agencies should promote and support the safe use of pesticides by farm plant agriculturists. This study revealed that the factors affecting safe pesticide-use behaviors among farm plant agriculturists included knowledge about pesticide use, social support, reading pesticide container labels, perceived self-efficacy in the modification of pesticide-use behaviors, sex, rice farmer status, corn farmer status, perceived susceptibility to pesticide use, having received information from the internet, and perceived severity of impact from pesticide use.

The acceptance of SARS-CoV-2 rapid antigen self-testing: A cross-sectional study in China.

Compared with the nucleic acid amplification test (NATT), the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) rapid antigen self-testing (RAST) has advantages in speed and convenience. However, little is known about people's acceptance and influencing factors for SARS-CoV-2 RAST. A cross-sectional study was conducted from April 21 to 30, 2022 in China. The χ2 test and multivariate logistic regressions were used to identify the influencing factors. The structural equation model was used to test the extended protective motivation theory (PMT) model hypotheses. Among the total of 5107 participants, 62.5% were willing to accept the SARS-CoV-2 RAST. There were significant differences in acceptance among different residences (p < 0.001), educational level (p < 0.001), occupation (p < 0.001), monthly income (p < 0.001), travel frequency (p < 0.05), and feelings about NATT (p < 0.001). Response efficacy (ß = 0.05; p = 0.025) and self-efficacy (ß = 0.84; p < 0.001) had a positive effect, while response cost showed a negative effect (ß = -0.07; p < 0.001). The public's major concerns about SARS-CoV-2 RAST are its reliability, testing method, price, and authority. Overall, a moderate intention to use SARS-CoV-2 RAST was found among the Chinese population. The extended PMT can be used for the prediction of intention to accept the RAST. We need to take measures to increase people's acceptance of SARS-CoV-2 RAST.

Covid-19 threat and coping: application of protection motivation theory to the pandemic experiences of people affected by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

BACKGROUND: People with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) are at high risk for severe outcomes from Covid-19 infection. Researchers exploring ALS and Covid-19 have focused primarily on system response and adaptation. Using Protection Motivation Theory, we investigated how people with ALS and family caregivers appraised and responded to Covid-19 threat, the 'costs' associated with pandemic response, and how health professionals and systems can better support people affected by ALS who are facing public health emergencies. METHODS: Data were drawn from the 'ALS Talk Project,' an asynchronous, moderated focus group study. Participants were recruited from regions across Canada. Seven groups met online over 14 weeks between January and July 2020. Fifty-three participants contributed to Covid-19 discussions. Data were qualitatively analyzed using directed content analysis and the constant-comparative approach. RESULTS: Participants learned about the Covid-19 pandemic from the media. They rapidly assessed their vulnerability and responded to Covid-19 threat by following recommendations from health authorities, information monitoring, and preparing for worst-case scenarios. Adopting protective behaviors had substantial response costs, including adaptations for medical care and home support workers, threatened access to advance care, and increased caregiver burden. Participants expressed need for ALS-specific, pandemic information from trusted health professionals and/or ALS health charities. Telemedicine introduced both conveniences and costs. Prior experience with ALS provided tools for coping with Covid-19. Threat and coping appraisal was a dynamic process involving ongoing vigilance and adaptation. Findings draw attention to the lack of emergency preparedness among participants and within health systems. CONCLUSIONS: Clinicians should engage ALS patients and families in ongoing discussions about pandemic coping, strategies to mitigate response costs, care pathways in the event of Covid-19 infection, and changing information about Covid-19 variants and vaccines. Healthcare systems should incorporate flexible approaches for medical care, leveraging the benefits of telemedicine and facilitating in-person interaction as needed and where possible. Research is needed to identify strategies to mitigate response costs and to further explore the interaction between prior experience and coping. Further study is also needed to determine how communication about emergency preparedness might be effectively incorporated into clinical care for those with ALS and other medically vulnerable populations.

Cognitive Factors of Weight Management During Pregnancy Among Chinese Women: A Study Applying Protective Motivation Theory.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to explore the psychological cognitive factors of weight management during pregnancy based on protective motivation theory (PMT). DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Participants were recruited at the Maternal and Child Health Hospital of Changzhou City, Jiangsu Province, China. SAMPLE: A sample of 533 pregnant women was enrolled in the study. MEASURES: Measures was a self-design questionnaire, comprising of demographics, cognition of weight management during pregnancy, and weight management behavior during pregnancy. ANALYSIS: Structural equation modeling was used to examine the weight management's cognitive factors, path relationships, and the influence of maternal characteristics. RESULTS: Self-efficacy cognition could promote gestational weight management behavior (b = .22, P < .001), but response cost cognition hindered gestational weight management (b = -.21, P < .001). Parity moderated pregnant women's self-efficacy cognition (diff b = .24, P < .01), where the self-efficacy of nullipara promoted weight management behaviors, but the self-efficacy of multipara had no significant effect. Also, the response cost factors stably existed in primipara and multipara groups, with multipara, being positively affected by response efficacy (b = .15, P < .05). CONCLUSION: Findings highlight the need for psychological and cognitive interventions. Intervention strategies that focus on enabling women to correctly understand response cost and make an active response, improve self-efficacy cognition especially among primipara, and strengthening multipara's response efficacy among pregnant are required.

Risk Management on Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis Adherence of Men Who Have Sex with Multiple Men: A Multicenter Prospective Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND: Men who have sex with multiple men (MSMM) belong to a high-risk group for HIV infection, and pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is an effective measure to prevent the infection. However, few studies on PrEP adherence by MSMM in China exist. We aimed to explore the protective motivation-related factors for PrEP adherence in an HIV-negative MSMM population in Western China and to provide a reference for future risk management and effective prevention strategies. METHODS: Data were collected from a 2-year follow-up cohort study of PrEP in MSM in China. Rogers' protective motivation theory (PMT) was used to study the PrEP adherence of MSMM, and logistic regression was performed to analyze the influencing factors of PrEP adherence. RESULTS: A total of 496 MSMM were included in the study: 299 (60.28%) of them in the good adherence group and 197 (39.72%) in the poor adherence group. The threat assessment scores of the good and poor adherence groups were 2.15 ± 0.59 and 2.06 ± 0.47, respectively, and the response assessment scores were 2.81 ± 0.62 and 2.74 ±0.62, respectively. Poor PrEP adherence was associated with on-demand PrEP medication (OR=0.670), students at school (OR=1.837), occasional condom use (OR=1.621), and good HIV knowledge (OR= 0.659). The higher the threat assessment score, the higher the susceptibility; and the lower the response cost, the stronger the protection motivation and the less likely MSMM were to have poor adherence. CONCLUSION: On-demand PrEP medication is more conducive to adherence. Preventive management should focus on MSMMs who are students at school, those who occasionally use condoms, and those with poor HIV knowledge. Improving threat perception and susceptibility, and controlling and reducing the response cost can effectively improve PrEP adherence, and the subsequent application of PMT during intervention research can provide a reference for HIV prevention in MSMM.