CHE L3

Community Health Education Theories and Practices

• The Health Belief Model explains human health decision-making and behavior based on perceived susceptibility, severity, benefits, barriers, cues to action, and self-efficacy.
• The Extended Parallel Process Model builds on the Health Belief Model and includes the appraisal of susceptibility, severity, response efficacy, and self-efficacy.
• The Trans Theoretical Model of Change views behavior change as progressing through five stages: pre-contemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, and maintenance.
• The Theory of Planned Behavior suggests that intent is influenced by attitude towards behavior, understanding of social norms, and perceived behavioral control.
• The Activated Health Education Model engages individuals in health assessment, information presentation, awareness creation, and personalized behavior change plans.
• The Social Cognitive Theory identifies self-efficacy, goals, and outcome expectancies as factors affecting health behavior change likelihood.
• Communication Theory emphasizes the need for multi-level strategies, including tailored and targeted messages, social marketing, media advocacy, and mass media campaigns.
• Diffusion of Innovation Theory categorizes people into innovators, early adopters, early majority adopters, late majority adopters, and laggards, influencing the response to health education.
• Community health education is conducted at individual, group, and general public levels, with individual and group approaches for attitude and behavior change and mass media for general public education.
• Mass media channels such as television, radio, press, films, health magazines, posters, health exhibitions, and social media are used for disseminating health information to the general public.
• Mass media is generally less effective in changing human behavior than individual or group methods but reaches large numbers of people and contributes to raising community knowledge.
• References include works by Manoj Sharma, John A. Romas, Mark J. Minelli, Donald J. Breckon, Robert J. Bensley, Jodi Brookins-Fisher, John R. Harvey, and R. Brick Lancaster, among others.

Explore the theories and practices of community health education with this quiz. Test your knowledge of models such as the Health Belief Model, Trans Theoretical Model of Change, Theory of Planned Behavior, and more. Understand the role of mass media, individual, and group approaches in promoting health behavior change.