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PubMedDate not supplied

Is cardiovascular risk factor knowledge sufficient to influence behavior?

This paper examines the level of cardiovascular risk knowledge in the general population and the relationship between such knowledge and behavior. The following questions are addressed: (1) How informed is the general population about what persons can do to reduce their risk of cardiovascular disease? (2) How do sociodemographic factors, self-perceptions of health, and cardiovascular risk factors relate to knowledge? (3) Is there a relationship between knowledge and behavior? (4) What might explain apparent inconsistencies between knowledge and behavior? The data used in this paper derive from a random sample of 732 men and women form the greater Boston area. We assessed cardiovascular risk factor knowledge by asking respondents what specific steps a person could take to make a heart attack or stroke less likely. Risk factors (including physiological measures), sociodemographic factors, and self-perceptions of health also were measured. Results showed that respondents were most knowledgeable about the relationships of exercise and cholesterol to heart disease. Knowledge was related positively to education, being female, and exercising. When we compared knowledge with behavior, results showed that for smokers and those who were overweight, risk was related to awareness, thus suggesting that knowledge does not lead necessarily to risk-reducing behavior. Implications of these results in terms of education and prevention are discussed.

Adult↗

PubMed1998

Contraceptive knowledge: development of a valid measure and survey of pill users and general practioners.

AIMS: To design, pilot, and validate a questionnaire to test contraceptive knowledge in combined oral contraceptive pill users. METHOD: To ensure face and content validity the questionnaire was developed using existing unvalidated instruments and in consultation with GPs, local and national family planning experts, and with pill users. The questionnaire was then piloted with 15 current oral contraceptive pill users and 10 local GPs, modified, and a contraceptive knowledge 'score' developed. Construct validity-that the degree of family planning training should predict contraceptive knowledge-was tested in four groups: family planning trainers (n=28), GPs (n=40), current pill users (n=53), and male medical students (n=59). Thirty current pill users were sent the questionnaire after two weeks to determine test-retest reliability. RESULTS: The questionnaire showed construct validity: there was a gradient of scores across the four knowledge groups. Family planning trainers had the highest scores, followed by GPs, and current pill users, with male medical students having the lowest scores (Kruskal-Wallis test p<0.001). Women had good knowledge of situations when pill efficacy is reduced but poorer knowledge of what action to take subsequently. Predictors of knowledge in pill users were educational level, age, and the importance attached to not falling pregnant-thus providing further evidence for the construct validity of the questionnaire. Test-retest reliability was good (rank correlation 0. 73). CONCLUSION: A contraceptive knowledge questionnaire suitable for use in audit or research has been developed which is reliable and has face, content and construct validity. Pill users have poor knowledge of what to do in situations of pill failure and about the details of emergency contraception. Trials are needed to assess the effectiveness of different strategies to improve contraceptive knowledge in women.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

Development and testing of the Dutch Heart Failure Knowledge Scale.

BACKGROUND: Heart failure (HF) knowledge as well as compliance are considered to be underlying mechanisms of the effects of HF management programs. However, there are no valid and reliable measurement instruments available which measures knowledge of HF patients. AIM: To develop a reliable and valid instrument, which measures the knowledge, patients have on their disease and the HF-related health care regimen. METHODS: The HF knowledge scale was developed in 3 phases; (1) concept analysis and first construction, (2) revision of items and (3) testing for validity and reliability. RESULTS: The Dutch HF knowledge scale is a 15-item, self-administered questionnaire that covers items concerning HF knowledge in general, knowledge on HF treatment (including diet and fluid restriction) and HF symptoms and symptom recognition. Face validity as well as content and construct validity was tested in HF patients in 19 hospitals in the Netherlands. The scale was able to differentiate between HF patients with high and low level of HF knowledge. Cronbach's alpha of the knowledge scale in this population (n=902) was .62. CONCLUSION: The instrument is a valid and reliable scale that can be used in research to gain insight in the effect of education and counselling of HF patients. After additional testing, the instrument seems to be a valid and reliable scale to be used in clinical practice to measure HF knowledge.

Heart Failure↗

PubMed1994

Development differences in associative memory: strategy use, mental effort, and knowledge access interactions.

The deployment of memory strategies is resource demanding and more so for younger children than for older children and adults. The associative memory studies reviewed show that accessibility to relevant event knowledge is directly related to the resource demands of using an elaboration strategy. The greater efficiency of strategy use by older children and adults permits the use of available mental resources to support additional task-relevant processing of to-be-learned items. This additional processing might include alternate or more durable encodings of pair relationships, creation of retrieval opportunities (strategies), and effective strategy monitoring. The additional processing enabled by the freeing of information-processing resources is hypothesized to be responsible for the developmental increase in the efficacy of elaboration and other associative strategies. Knowledge access also affects the nature of the relational strategy selected and the recall benefits observed. Although increases in "elaboration" were hypothesized to account for developmental differences in associative memory, the evidence clearly shows that other associative strategies are also involved. Although these other associative strategies involve elaboration in a nontechnical sense, the observed dissociations between them and the elaboration strategy argue for maintaining the distinction. Moreover, further analysis is needed to understand the interactions between strategy selection and knowledge access. In this regard, the initial strategy deployed by a learner is dependent on his or her knowledge about the relative effectiveness of various relational associations and interactions with knowledge access. For example, a younger subject might forgo "elaboration" if the items are "captured" by an "other associative" relationship activated during strategy deployment (particularly if the initial search for an elaboration is very effortful). In contrast, an older subject might persevere at retrieving a relevant event because of his or her knowledge about the benefits of encoding "direct" interactions for pair members. The learner's subsequent strategy selection, either for additional processing or encoding of new pairs, is undoubtedly more complex because of increases in the learner's knowledge about the relationships between strategy use, knowledge access, and resource demands. In conclusion, research examined in this chapter verified relationships between strategy use, mental effort, and knowledge access. Moreover, interactions between strategy use and knowledge access were exposed. These relationships are presumed to underlie developmental differences in the efficacy of memory strategies.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1994

A concept analysis of personal knowledge: application to nursing education.

A concept analysis of personal knowledge is completed using the Walker and Avant method. The analysis is based on Polanyi's concept of personal knowledge with a working definition being extrapolated from his writings combined with Belenky and colleagues' concept of constructed knowledge. The goal is to construct a definition of personal knowledge which recognizes the multifaceted processing used by humans in the endeavour to perceive new patterns, and which is free from discrimination based on age, sex, culture, discipline, world view or learning style. Knowledge is defined as pattern recognition which may be probabilistically rather than exactly predictive. Personal knowledge is defined as recognition of a new pattern through processing by the human being. The processing may consist of any combination of human and environmental interaction, 'rational intuiting', appraisal, active comprehension and personal judgement, all in a setting of departure from the current conceptual framework. The pattern may be new to the person or to humanity. Personal knowledge is denoted by perception of the person. The antecedents, attributes and consequences are taken from the literature. The empirical referents are hypothesized from a review of the nursing, social work and education literature. After defining personal knowledge and differentiating it from other phenomena, it is integrated into nursing education. An educator accepting personal knowledge as an expectation for students approaches the teaching/learning situation by planning to create an atmosphere in which individual growth and illumination can occur. Therein personal knowledge is integrated into nursing education using the most barrier-free theoretical frameworks in the areas of learning, curriculum and instruction.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Analysis of orthopedic specialty knowledge and comparison of 2 written test methods].

QUESTION: What about the knowledge of specific orthopaedic subjects in medical education as tested with mc-questions and open-ended questions? METHOD: 524 medical students were evaluated by a questionnaire survey to determine the state of orthopaedic knowledge in different periods of medical education. With the same questionnaire the use of two different types of written tests of knowledge (multiple choice questions and open-ended questions) has been tested and the results have been compared. The students participating in the orthopaedical practical (6th clinical semester) have been tested before and after the practical, given as pretest and posttest. RESULTS: The results show that the orthopaedic knowledge corresponds to the educational level so that during medical formation, there is a gradual knowledge gain. Comparison of the results of the pretest and the posttest reveals that the highest knowledge gain occurred during the orthopaedic practical. For all groups candidates performed better in mc-questions than in open-ended questions. Likewise in all groups, open-ended questions were found to be more difficult than the mc-questions. CONCLUSIONS: To summarize it may be concluded that there is a gradual orthopaedical knowledge gain during medical formation. It was found that students gain a considerable part of their technical knowledge during the practicals. Both mc-questions and open-ended questions are useful to measure this knowledge gain where there are hints that open-ended questions give a more accurate assessment of the actual knowledge. The pre- and posttest setting can provide both teachers and students with feedback regarding the realization and acquisition of instructional contents.

Curriculum↗

PubMed1988

Primary knowledge, medical education and consultant expertise.

We have studied the knowledge of students and clinicians that they actually used to follow up four problems in general medicine. Some unexpected similarities and differences in their readily accessible or primary knowledge were found in groups from first-year clinical medical students to consultants. There is no linear increase in the quantity of primary knowledge with experience, but qualitative changes are very much more important. At all levels individuals show a remarkable dissimilarity in the knowledge they use to solve clinical problems, so that the bulk of personal knowledge used is individual. Comparatively rarely do people use the same knowledge to solve any one clinical problem. However, there is evidence of a general tendency towards increasing uniformity in knowledge as a result of the medical school years. After houseman level, individuality increases again. These changes result in consultants achieving an identical profile to first-year clinical medical students in terms of the extent to which their primary knowledge bases are held individually or in common. These findings suggest that consultant expertise is actually based on individual experience rather than a common core of knowledge. The influence of medical school in providing such a common knowledge base is (1) limited and (2) reversed by clinical practice. The results suggest the necessity for increased vocational and practice-oriented components in medical education, particularly in postgraduate education.

Clinical Competence↗

PubMed1996

Community knowledge of mental illness and reaction to mentally ill people.

BACKGROUND: We test the hypothesis that negative attitudes to mentally ill people may be fuelled by a lack of knowledge. METHOD: A census of knowledge of mental illness was conducted in two areas prior to the opening of long-stay supported houses for the mentally ill in each area. Three attitudinal factors (Fear and Exclusion, Social Control and Goodwill) which had been extracted by factor analysis of the Community Attitudes toward the Mentally Ill (CAMI) inventory (see previous paper) were analysed in respect of their associations with knowledge of mental illness. RESULTS: Most respondents (80%) knew of somebody who had a mental illness but a substantial proportion of respondents had little knowledge about mental illness. Social Control showed an association with knowledge of mental illness. Groups who showed more socially controlling attitudes (especially those over 50 years old, those of lower social class, and those of non-Caucasian ethnic origin) had less knowledge about mental illness. Regression analysis revealed that when knowledge was taken into account, age had no effect on Social Control, and the effect of social class and ethnic origin was diminished. Respondents with children, who showed more Fear and Exclusion, were not less knowledgeable about mental illness. CONCLUSIONS: The results support the hypothesis that negative attitudes, especially in older people, are fuelled by a lack of knowledge. Negative attitudes among people with children are not related to a lack of knowledge.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2004

Retaining and transferring nursing knowledge through a hospital internship program.

In healthcare, organizations recognize that human capital is their most valuable asset. The importance of investing in knowledge workers is imperative given the current and future shortage of health professionals. Knowledge acquisition occurs through continuous learning and the transfer of information from those who are highly experienced to those who are less qualified. At St. Michael's Hospital, two innovative and unique programs were created for the transfer of knowledge. The first was a nurse fellowship program that enabled experienced nurses to spend two to three months learning new skills to advance clinical practice. The second was a nurse internship program in which new graduates spend three to four months in their area of hire to enhance clinical practice through skill development and prioritization of patient care needs. This paper describes both programs and presents an evaluation of the new-graduate internship program as an opportunity for professional development and career enhancement For nurse interns, the program promotes self-esteem and professional confidence, improves job satisfaction and rewards nurses for their contribution. For nurse preceptors, the program provides job enrichment, experience in teaching and recognition by the organization and peers that they are knowledge experts. In healthcare, organizations have come to acknowledge that their most valuable asset is human capital, in particular, knowledge workers (Horibe 1999). Knowledge workers contribute a composite of information, intellectual property and experience (Horibe 1999), acquired by study, investigation, observation or practice (Webster's Dictionary 1989). Investing in knowledge workers is investing in the future. In this regard, organizations have implemented recruitment and retention strategies to attract, retain and advance the highest calibre of health professional. Knowledge workers contribute to an organization through their ideas, analyses of complex situations and sound judgment in decision-making (Horibe 1999). They further develop these skills over the course of their career through continuous learning. This paper will focus on the importance of investing in nurses as knowledge workers. In particular, given the shortage of nurses and the reality that 25% of today's nurses can retire over the next 10 years (CNA 2001), it is imperative that knowledge transfer occur from highly experienced to less experienced nurses.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Maternal knowledge on breastfeeding and related factors].

The influence of maternal knowledge about breastfeeding on the initiation and duration of lactation has been described. The present study evaluated the maternal knowledge about breastfeeding and its relationship with prenatal and postnatal orientation and prevalence of breastfeeding at 3 months. A cross-sectional study was designed involving 100 mothers of first-born babies between 6 and 12 months old receiving medical care in the Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre. The mothers answered a standardized questionnaire containing 14 questions to test knowledge on breastfeeding. The majority of mothers (62%) could not answer correctly half of the questions. Those more educated, who received prenatal orientation about breastfeeding and who had at least 5 prenatal visits had better knowledge. On the other hand, mothers who received postnatal orientation did not present a better knowledge. Prevalence of breastfeeding at 3 months was not related to maternal knowledge on the subject. The maternal knowledge about many aspects of breastfeeding was low. Postnatal orientation did not increase this knowledge. On the other hand, prenatal orientation had a positive impact on maternal knowledge about breastfeeding. Nonetheless this increase in knowledge was not sufficient to interfere with the prevalence of early interruption of breastfeeding.

English Abstract↗

PubMed2002

Knowledge and attitude regarding sleep medicine of medical students and physicians in Split, Croatia.

AIM: To assess the knowledge and attitudes regarding sleep medicine among second-year medical students and physicians. METHODS: A total of 112 respondents were surveyed for their attitude and knowledge regarding sleep medicine and hypertension. The respondents were divided into three groups: 1) second-year medical students (46 or 41%); 2) physicians at postgraduate study program (26 or 23%); and 3) specialists in different fields (40 or 36%). The questionnaire was composed of the sleep medicine attitude test, sleep medicine knowledge test, and hypertension knowledge test. Differences among the groups were statistically analyzed with ANOVA, and differences within each group were analyzed with Wilcoxon test. RESULTS: Postgraduate students and specialists showed better knowledge in hypertension than in sleep medicine (p=0.001 and p<0.001, respectively). In the student group, no difference was found between the knowledge in hypertension and sleep medicine (p=0.192). Differences in sleep medicine knowledge were not found between medical students and specialists (p=0.228) or between postgraduates and specialists (p=0.647). Sleep medicine attitude score was similar in all groups (p=0.470). In general, there was a positive correlation between sleep medicine knowledge and attitude (p=0.002), and between hypertension knowledge and sleep medicine attitude (p=0.019). CONCLUSION: Medical students, postgraduate physicians, and specialists showed poor knowledge but positive attitude toward sleep medicine. This finding points to the need for better education in the field of sleep medicine in medical schools.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗

PubMed2001

Assessment and upgrading of Alexandria University nursing students' knowledge and attitudes about genetic counseling.

The aim of this study was to study the effect of a teaching unit on upgrading university-nursing students' knowledge and attitudes about genetic counseling. The study used pre- test, posttest with no control group design. All nursing students (100) who accepted to participate in the study and enrolled in the Maternity and Gynecological-nursing course, during the second semester of the third academic year 1999-2000, at the Faculty of Nursing, Alexandria University, were involved in the study. A self-administered questionnaire sheet was used to assess nursing students' knowledge about genetic counseling, while a 3-point Likert-like scale was used to assess their attitudes towards it. The content of six-hours' teaching unit -about genetic counseling was taught to students by the researchers based on their needs. The study revealed a general lack of knowledge among nursing students regarding basic information about genetic counseling, where poor total score of knowledge was obtained by all of them in the pre-test. In addition, the pre-test revealed that negative attitude was found in about half of the nursing students. The teaching unit had an obvious effect on the nursing students' knowledge and attitudes regarding genetic counseling, as the total score of their knowledge and attitudes had improved after implementation of the teaching unit. Moreover, there was a significant relationship between nursing students' knowledge and attitudes towards genetic counseling before and after implementation of the teaching unit. Therefore, a negative attitude was found with poor total score of knowledge in the pre-test and positive attitude was found with good total score of knowledge in the post-test. So, there is a need to improve knowledge and change attitude of nursing students about genetic counseling. As well as genetic counseling should be included in the university-nursing curriculum and should be reviewed periodically to accommodate the relevant fast change in the science and technology of genetics. Moreover, nursing students must be informed about the different community resources, which offer the genetic counseling services.

Adult↗

PubMed1986

[Food and nutrition knowledge of students graduating from basic education in the metropolitan area of Santiago, Chile].

The aim of this study was to evaluate the degree of knowledge on food and nutrition in students graduating from Basic Education in the Metropolitan Area of Santiago, Chile. A random sample of 249 students of both sexes (1:1) from public and non-public schools (1:1) and from high, medium and low socioeconomic level (SEL), was selected. SEL was measured through the Graffar Modified Scale, and the degree of knowledge on food and nutrition was evaluated through a standardized test of 29 multiple choice items, based on the objectives of the curriculum program. The test was divided in two areas: Area 1, which contemplated Food and Requirements and Area 2, Food, Personal and Environmental Hygiene. Data were analyzed by chi-square procedure, comparing students who obtained sufficient knowledge (greater than or equal to 50% of correct answers) with those who obtained insufficient knowledge (less than 50% of correct answers). Results of the study indicated that 39.8% of students registered sufficient knowledge, 31.3% and 65.9% in Area 1 and 2, respectively. According to SEL, 62.1% and 12.3% of students from high and low SEL, respectively, registered sufficient knowledge (p less than 0.001), and the same effect was observed in Areas 1 and 2. In relation to sex, 46.3% of females and 33.3% of males registered sufficient knowledge (p less than 0.05), fact which was confirmed in both areas of the test. No significant differences were registered in the degree of knowledge on food and nutrition of students from public and non-public schools. It is therefore concluded that the degree of knowledge on food and nutrition in students graduating from Basic Education differs significantly according to SEL and, sex. This study represents a basic contribution to the better understanding of factors affecting the degree of knowledge on food and nutrition in students graduating from Basic Education in Santiago, Chile, and may serve as base-line for further studies on the subject.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

An inductive algorithm approach to knowledge acquisition for expert system development. A pilot study.

Knowledge acquisition, which consists of knowledge elicitation and knowledge representation, often is considered the weakest link in the design of expert systems. Systems frequently are built on the knowledge of one expert and require extensive use of knowledge engineering techniques to elicit this knowledge from the expert. Inductive algorithms are a potential alternative method of knowledge acquisition for expert system development. The aim of this pilot study was to examine the feasibility of applying machine learning techniques, specifically, inductive algorithms, to an existing research database as a method for knowledge elicitation and knowledge representation for expert system development. Two inductive algorithms (C4 and Classification and Regression Trees [CART]) that generate decision trees were selected for the analysis using a data set of 201 patients hospitalized for Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia. Neither C4 nor CART produced trees with an accuracy that was significantly better than the baseline accuracy (71.3%) for prediction of outcome in the data set. The mean accuracy of the C4 decision trees was below baseline and the mean accuracy of CART decision trees was 74.6%. The experts found both algorithms comprehensible, but not adequate, and identified important missing predictor variables. The study findings suggest that additional research is needed to examine the appropriate use of inductive algorithms in the transformation of nursing data and information into nursing knowledge.

Algorithms↗

PubMed1993

Toward an interim standard for patient-centered knowledge-access.

Most care-giver "knowledge" needs arise at the point of care and are "patient-centered." Many of these knowledge needs can be met using existing on-line knowledge sources, but the process is too time-consuming, currently, for even the computer-proficient. We are developing a set of public domain standards aimed at bringing potentially relevant knowledge to the point of care in a straight-forward and timely fashion. The standards will a) make use of selected items from a Computer-based Patient Record (CPR), e.g., a diagnosis and measure of severity, b) anticipate certain care-giver knowledge needs, e.g., "therapy," "protocols," "complications," and c) try to satisfy those needs from available knowledge sources, e.g., knowledge-bases, citation databases, practice guidelines, and on-line textbooks. The standards will use templates, i.e., fill-in-the-blank structures, to anticipate knowledge needs and UMLS Metathesaurus enhancements to represent the content of knowledge sources. Together, the standards will form the specification for a "Knowledge-Server" (KS) designed to be accessed from any CPR system. Plans are in place to test an interim version of this specification in the context of medical oncology. We are accumulating anecdotal evidence that a KS operating in conjunction with a CPR is much more compelling to users than either a CPR or a KS operating alone.

Artificial Intelligence↗

PubMed2004

Perimenopausal knowledge of mid-life women in northern Taiwan.

BACKGROUND: This work has been carried out keeping in view that although knowledge related to perimenopause is an important health issue for women worldwide, little information is known about mid-life Taiwanese women's knowledge of perimenopause. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this paper was to explore the level of perimenopausal knowledge of mid-life women in northern Taiwan, to describe the relationship between demographic factors and women's knowledge, and to identify what information health providers need to offer them. DESIGN: A cross-sectional descriptive survey was conducted. METHOD: The Perimenopausal Knowledge Questionnaire was used to collect data. The study was carried out in August 2000 to September 2001. A convenience sample was recruited from traditional Chinese medicine clinics, gynecology clinics and communities in northern Taipei. RESULTS: Our findings indicated that the overall mean correct answer weighted Perimenopausal Knowledge score of these mid-life women was 46.31. The rank of weighted scores from highest to lowest was: (1) self-care during perimenopause, (2) the perception of perimenopause, (3) knowledge related to hormone replacement therapy and (4) body changes associated with the declined oestrogen in perimenopause. Only educational level was significantly associated with Perimenopause Knowledge level (P < 0.01). Less than 20% (n = 353) of the women answered the items that measured self-management of symptoms related to perimenopause correctly. Less than 1.4% of the women knew that taking hormone replacement therapy required a physician's prescription and subsequent regular health check-ups. CONCLUSION: Participants lacked adequate knowledge about perimenopause. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICES: Health providers need to provide factual information about the normal body changes of perimenopause, self-management of perimenopausal disturbances and appropriate use of hormone replacement therapy.

Adult↗

PubMed2003

Do medical students have the knowledge needed to maximize organ donation rates?

INTRODUCTION: The chronic shortage of organs for donation could be improved by increasing the numbers of potential and actual donors. Physicians can play a key role in solving this problem but may miss opportunities because they lack knowledge about organ donation to answer questions or concerns. Education of physicians early in their careers may lead to better procurement rates for donor organs. We carried out a study at Queen's University in Kingston, Ont., to determine whether medical students have sufficient knowledge of topics shown to affect organ donation rates. METHODS: Medical students from years 1-4 completed a self-administered questionnaire. Section 1 tested general knowledge about organ donation; section 2 tested the students' ability to identify potential donors; and section 3 dealt with the approach to the potential donor's family. Univariate predictors of mean test scores were assessed using the t-test. RESULTS: Of 322 medical students who received the questionnaire, 260 (81%) responded. The mean age of the students was 25 years and 54% were men. The mean knowledge score was 6.7 out of a possible score of 14. Third-year students had the best knowledge scores (7.6), followed by fourth- (7.4), second- (6.6) and first-year students (5.7). Teaching about organ donation and a student's comfort with approaching a family for organ donation were also predictive of higher knowledge scores. There was no correlation between knowledge score and age, gender or whether the student was carrying a signed donor card. Knowledge scores were low in all 3 sections. Thirty-six percent of students did not know that brain death means that the patient is dead rather than in a coma. Half the medical students believed that people of certain religious groups should not be approached about organ donation. CONCLUSIONS: Medical students possess limited knowledge about organ donation topics important for maximizing procurement rates. A teaching intervention designed to target these shortcomings may be beneficial.

Adult↗

PubMed1994

AIDS knowledge and condom use in a birth cohort of 16 year olds.

AIMS: The aims of this study were to examine levels of AIDS knowledge and contraceptive practices in a birth cohort of 16 year old Christchurch born children. METHODS: The study was based on the birth cohort of young people participating in the Christchurch Health and Development Study. At age 16 years 953 subjects were questioned about: (a) levels of AIDS knowledge using a 16 item AIDS knowledge questionnaire; (b) rates of sexual activity; (c) patterns of contraceptive use. RESULTS: Members of this cohort had a generally very high knowledge of AIDS with 92% of the sample responding correctly to 14 or more of the 16 AIDS knowledge questions. Just over a quarter of this sample were sexually active during their 16th year and it was estimated that condoms were used in 59% of all sexual acts reported by sample members. There was a clear tendency for rates of condom use to decline with increasing sexual experience with this decline being due to the fact that as teenagers become more sexually experienced condoms were progressively replaced by other contraceptive methods. Those with high levels of AIDS knowledge used condoms at a higher rate of those with low levels of AIDS knowledge even when due allowance was made for the frequency of sexual activity and other potentially confounding factors. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study suggest that publicity and education about AIDS has been successful in producing high levels of knowledge about this condition in this cohort. However, this knowledge was not directly translated into high levels of condom use largely as a result of the fact that as teenagers became increasingly sexually experienced there was a tendency for condom use to be replaced by other methods of contraception and notably the contraceptive pill.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗