Health Education and Behavioral Sciences, High Institute of Public Health, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt.
J Occup Med Toxicol. 2012 Feb 25;7:3. doi: 10.1186/1745-6673-7-3.
In Egypt, many pesticides are used to control pests in agricultural farms. Our study aimed to investigate knowledge and behaviors of farmers related to pesticide use and their relation to educational level and health locus of control. Health locus of control is the degree to which individuals believe that their health is controlled by internal or external factors.
A cross-sectional randomized approach was used to collect data from 335 farmers in Mahmoudiya region, Egypt using an interview questionnaire. Results were analyzed using Pearson Chi-square test, Fisher's exact test, Student t-test and ANOVA.
The average age of farmers was 34 years and 61% of them didn't receive school education. School education was related to higher levels of knowledge and behaviors. Farmers who received school education had more knowledge about the negative effects of pesticides on health and routes of contamination with pesticides. They also had higher scores on reading labels of pesticides containers and taking precautions after coming in contact with pesticides. Regarding health locus of control, higher internal beliefs were significantly related to higher knowledge and behaviors scores, while there was no significant relation between chance and powerful others beliefs with knowledge or behaviors.
In the present study, higher level of education and lower level of internal beliefs were related to better knowledge and safer use of pesticides among Egyptian farmers. We recommend that strategies for raising internal beliefs must be included in health education programs that aim to ameliorate pesticides use among farmers.
在埃及，许多农药被用于农业农场控制害虫。我们的研究旨在调查农民与农药使用相关的知识和行为，以及这些知识和行为与教育水平和健康控制源的关系。健康控制源是指个人认为健康受内部还是外部因素控制的程度。
采用横断面随机方法，从埃及马哈茂迪耶地区的 335 名农民中收集数据，使用访谈问卷。使用 Pearson 卡方检验、Fisher 确切检验、学生 t 检验和 ANOVA 分析结果。
农民的平均年龄为 34 岁，其中 61%没有接受过学校教育。学校教育与更高水平的知识和行为有关。接受过学校教育的农民对农药对健康的负面影响和接触农药的污染途径有更多的了解。他们在阅读农药容器标签和接触农药后采取预防措施方面的得分也更高。关于健康控制源，更高的内在信念与更高的知识和行为得分显著相关，而机会和强大他人信念与知识或行为之间没有显著关系。
在本研究中，较高的教育水平和较低的内在信念与埃及农民更好的农药知识和更安全的使用有关。我们建议，在旨在改善农民农药使用的健康教育计划中，必须包括提高内在信念的策略。
