Promoting Backpack Carrying Behavior in Female Students: An Application of Peer Education

Aims: A backpack is considered as one of the most common cases of carrying things to schools. It is argued that improper carrying can lead to musculoskeletal pain in students. Health education through peers can play an important role in promoting proper backpack carrying behaviors. This study aimed to evaluate peer education on how to carry backpacks in female high school students. Method and Materials: This quasi-Intervention study was conducted on 92 female high school students in Bahnemir, Iran using multi-stage cluster random sampling. The data regarding knowledge, attitude and backpack carrying behavior were collected through a valied questionnaire before and six months after the intervention. Just intervention group received an educational program in four sessions by peers. The data were analyzed by SPSS version 21 . Findings: 92 students with a mean age of 13.90 ± 0.71participated in Intervention and control groups (n= 46 in each group). The variables of knowledge, attitude and backpack carrying behavior improved after intervention (respectively (P 0.001). Conclusion: According to the results of this study, it is suggested to consider these findings in the design, implementation and evaluation of educational interventions to improve carrying behavior of backpacks among this vulnerable target group.