The effect of empowerment program to reduce Sugar Consumption based on the Multi-Theory Model on Body Mass Index and abdominal obesity in Iranian women.

BACKGROUND: Considering the prevalence of overweight and abdominal obesity in middle-aged women, this study was conducted to determine the effect of empowerment program to reduce sugar consumption based on the Multi-Theory Model (MTM) on Body Mass Index (BMI) and abdominal obesity in women aged 30-60 in Joven. METHODS: This quasi-experimental study (include descriptive and interventional sections) was conducted on the Joven city, Khorasan Razavi province, Iran country from October 2020 to August 2021. Sampling was performed as a multi-stage cluster. First, a descriptive study was performed among 400 women, and then 128 people who were eligible to enter the interventional phase of the study were selected. In the control group, 63 people and in the intervention group, 65 people were eligible to enter the study. The educational intervention was performed in five 60-minute sessions for groups of 12 people. The instruments included the demographic questionnaire, sugar consumption checklist and researcher-made questionnaire based on MTM constructs. Before the intervention, one, three and six months after the intervention, the questionnaire was completed by both intervention and control groups also measurement of waist circumference and BMI were performed using standard instruments. The obtained data were analyzed by SPSS 17. RESULTS: After the educational intervention, there was a significant difference between the intervention and control groups in all the MTM constructs. Also, six months after the educational intervention, BMI, waist circumference and amount of consumption of sugary substances decreased significantly in the intervention group (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Educational intervention based on the MTM can be effective in reducing the consumption of sugary substances and shaping behaviors related to healthy lifestyle in women.

The relationship between readiness for treatment of substance use and self-efficacy based on life skills.

Substance use is a social harm. Promoting substance users readiness for treatment of substance use with a non-medical approach is important besides the medical approach. The current study aimed to determine the relationship between readiness for treatment of substance use and self-efficacy based on life skills. In this descriptive-analytical study, a number of 118 substance users in Hamadan city (Iran) were participated. The data collection tools were Stages of Change Readiness and Treatment Eagerness Scale (SOCRATES) and Drug Avoidance Self-Efficacy Scale (DASES). Analytical and descriptive tests were used for data analysis, at 95% significant level, using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences 16. The results of this study showed that the readiness for treatment of substance use had a significant relationship with the self-efficacy includes assertiveness and communication (Df:1; Pvalue<0.05). Self-efficacy based on life skills can be used to promote substance users readiness for treatment of substance use in educational interventions.

Development and Validation of an Instrument to Measure Parental Factors Related to Substance Use Prevention in Adolescents.

BACKGROUND: The average age of using illicit drugs for the first time in adolescents has decreased in Iran over the past years. Studies show that family and environment play a notable role in keeping adolescents away from substances. AIMS: The present study is an attempt to develop and validate a model-based questionnaire to measure parental factors related to substance use prevention in adolescents. METHODS: This methodological study was carried out on 336 parents of high school students in Sabzevar- Iran, in 2018. The first draft of the questionnaire, including 136 items, was developed based on the constructs of the Health Promotion Model (HPM) using similar questionnaires, literature review, and interviewing 9 qualified experts. The validity of the questionnaire was measured through face validity (qualitative and quantitative), content validity (qualitative and quantitative), and construct validity (confirmatory factor analysis). The reliability of the questionnaire was measured by internal consistency and test-retest reliability. SPSS ver. 16 and LISREL ver. 8.2 software was used for statistical analysis. RESULTS: Throughout the validation process, 35 items were omitted, and the final version of the questionnaire consisting of 101 items was developed. The overall content validity ratio was 0.81, which indicates the proper and understandable content of the items. The overall content validity index was 0.96, which indicates excellent expert validity. The Cronbach's alpha coefficient of the questionnaire was 0.85 (constructs range= 0.73-0.96), and the intraclass correlation coefficient of the questionnaire was 0.78 (constructs range= 0.46-0.91), which indicates that the questionnaire has good internal consistency and test-retest reliability. Further, the confirmatory factor analysis yielded an appropriate fit for the model (RMSEA= 0.069, χ2/df= 2.77, GFI= 0.60, AGFI= 0.83, CFI= 0.83, NNFI= 0.83). CONCLUSION: The validity and reliability of the HPM-based questionnaire were supported. Therefore, the questionnaire can be used by health educators and health policymakers in empowerment programs for parents to improve their behavioral skills concerning the prevention of substance use in their adolescents.

Change processes questionnaire for treatment of drug dependents based on transtheoretical model: Psychometric properties in Iran 2016.

BACKGROUND: Drug abuse is a serious subject that can lead to social, economic, cultural and health problems. The routine approaches in treatment of drug abuse are either medication or non-medication methods. Non-medication approach is focused on mental and social health. Non-drug treatment requires appropriate tools. OBJECTIVE: To determine the validity, reliability, and structure of the Processes of Change Questionnaire. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, which was conducted in 2016, three hundred sixty-two drug dependents in Sabzevar Substance Abuse Treatment Centers (Iran) were enrolled in the study. Samples were selected through the multi-stage sampling method. They completed the 40-item Processes of Change Questionnaire (drug version). In this study, Backward-Forward method, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), test-retest, Cronbach's alpha, content validity ratio (CVR) and content validity index (CVI) were used, using AMOS 5.0 and SPSS version 11.5. RESULTS: Findings of the CFA showed the questionnaire has a good fit. The fit index of the CFA was calculated as 0.75. Cronbach's alpha was 0.93 for the whole questionnaire, and ranged from 0.51 to 0.88 for its different domains. Also, intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and content validity were satisfactory. CONCLUSION: Based on the findings of this study, the processes of change 40-item questionnaire: drug version was a credible, reliable and valid tool to identify effective factors in the treatment drug abuse among the population of the Sabzevar, Iran.

Predictors of intention to marriage based on theory of planned behavior among university students in Iran.

INTRODUCTION: Marriage is a social capital in society, so that makes the behavioral and social stability of parents and children in a generation, productive. Various factors can affect the intention of marriage, including individual, economic, social and cultural factors. The present study aimed to determine predictors of university students' intention to marriage based on the theory of planned behavior (TPB). METHODS: This cross-sectional study was performed among 192 single students (Master and PhD students with five to seven years of dentistry and medicine) in Hamadan, in 2014. The samples in this study were selected through convenient sampling. The data collection tools were demographic and TPB questionnaires. A questionnaire based on the TPB model was used in order to assess attitude toward behavior, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, and intention. Data were analyzed by using SPSS16 and descriptive indexes, independent-samples t-test, One-way ANOVA and multivariate linear regression at 95% significant level. RESULTS: The results showed that attitudes toward marriage (ß=0.217; p=0.001), subjective norms (ß=0.366; p<0.001), and perceived behavioral control (ß=0.279; p<0.001) significantly predicted students' intention to marriage. The TPB constructs explained 44% of the variance of intention. CONCLUSION: Results indicated that strategies to improve the intention of marriage can include: expression of psychological needs such as having a companion, the importance of responsibility, society attitude of marriage, parents and marriage, the importance of the decision-making power and job position.