Effects of Developing Primary Caregivers’ Self-Efficacy on Caring Behavior for Underweight Preschool Children in the Child Development Centers, Nakhon Si Thammarat Province

Background: Underweight in preschool children remains a significant public health concern, particularly in the community where caregivers are key contributors to child nutrition. This quasi-experimental study aimed to assess the effectiveness of a caregiver self-efficacy-based intervention on caregiving practices and nutritional outcomes. Materials and Methods: The study was conducted over three months at a child development center in Tha Sala District, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Thailand. The study involved 60 primary caregivers of underweight preschool children (aged 2.5–5 years). The study was conducted in Tha Sala District, Nakhon Si Thammarat Province, which was selected by simple random sampling from the five districts with the highest prevalence of underweight preschool children. Ten child development centers were randomly selected from 28 centers and randomly allocated to the experimental group (5 centers) or the control group (5 centers), with 30 participants in each group. The intervention was designed to improve caregiver self-efficacy through structured education, practical skills training, and support provided for effective behavior practice. We collected data using structured questionnaires on demographic characteristics, health status of the child, self-efficacy of the caregiver, and caregiving practices. Participant characteristics were summarized using descriptive statistics. The Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used to compare differences within groups, and the Mann–Whitney U test compared differences between groups. Results: After the intervention, caregivers in the experimental group had significantly better self-efficacy and caregiving practice scores compared to both baseline and control (p < 0.05). In addition, the experimental group had greater improvements in body weight. The findings demonstrate the effectiveness of self-efficacy-based interventions in enhancing caregiver behaviors and child nutritional status. Conclusions: Incorporating such interventions into community-based child health programs has the potential to increase the effectiveness of interventions and can serve as a sustainable approach to reducing childhood undernutrition in comparable settings.