Mothers’ Education for Improving Their Children’s Self-efficacy About Physical Activity

Background: This study aimed to determine the effect of mothers’ education on improving children’s self-efficacy regarding physical activity. Methods: This descriptive-interventional, quasi-experimental study was performed in Iran during 2021. First, 384 mothers were selected from 5 health centers in Mashhad based on the inclusion criteria. Then, 102 mothers with children aged 6-7 years were chosen using a simple random method and placed in two test (n=51) and control (n=51) groups. The educational program was held based on self-efficacy theory for the test group in five sessions. The data were collected in three stages (before, immediately, and three months later) using a valid researcher-made questionnaire. Eventually, the data were analyzed by SPSS 20 using chi-square, Mann-Whitney, Friedman, and Kruskal-Wallis. Results: Descriptive statistics demonstrated that demographic variables had a significant relationship with physical activity self-efficacy in the children under study (P<0.05). Regarding the self-efficacy score in the test group, before the educational program, it was 40.8±74.27, and immediately after the intervention and in the follow-up stage, it further increased to 53.9±21.51 and 54.9±31.63, respectively. This increase was statistically significant (P<0.05) with an effect size of 0.53. However, no significant differences were observed in the control group. Conclusion: The results revealed that an educational program based on self-efficacy theory can be effective in improving children’s physical activity.