Effect of Educational Intervention based on the Theory of Planned Behavior on Preventing Water Pipe Smoking in Secondary School Students

Aims: Water pipe smoking, especially among young people, has been on the rise and the increasing prevalence of tobacco use among students is worrying. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of educational intervention based on the theory of planned behavior on preventing water pipe smoking in secondary school students. Materials & Methods: This semi-experimental study was performed on 400 students from high school boy students (2nd and 3rd) of Fasa city in 2018-2019. The subjects were selected by cluster random sampling method and divided into control (n=200) and experimental (n=200) groups. The intervention was based on planned behavior theory model for the experimental group in 7 sessions of 50-55 minutes. A questionnaire including demographic information, theory of planned behavior constructs and preventive behaviors of water pipe smoking in high school students were completed before and three months after intervention by both groups. Data were analyzed by SPSS 22 software using Chi-square, independent and paired t-tests. Findings: There was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of knowledge, attitude, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, intent and preventive behaviors of water pipe smoking pre intervention (p>0.05). However, in the three months after intervention, the experimental group showed a significant increase in any of these variables (p=0.001), while there was no significant difference in the control group (p>0.05). Conclusion: The educational intervention based on the theory of planned behavior is effective on preventing water pipe smoking in secondary school students.