Relationship between Health Literacy and Pregnancy Prevention Behaviors of Female University Students in Nakhon Ratchasima Province

Abstract

This was a cross sectional descriptive study and aimed to study: 1) the level of health literacy and pregnancy prevention behaviors of female university students; and 2) the relationship between health literacy and pregnancy prevention behaviors of female university students. The sample group was 340 first-year female university students of the academic year 2017, Nakhon Ratchasima Province who were stratified by random sampling. The research tool was a questionnaire, and data were analyzed by frequency, percentage, and Pearson’s product moment correlation coefficient.

The results showed that: 1) most of the samples had the level of health literacy as moderate at 42.4 %.  Health literacy in each aspect were to access information and health services, and communication to increase at the high level (64.1%, 72.9%). Furthermore, self-management, media and information literacy, health cognition and decision-making aspects were at the moderate level (54.1%, 50.3%, 49.7%,46.2%). Pregnancy prevention behavior was also at the moderate level (44.7%). As a result, health cognition and decision-making were found in relating to pregnancy prevention behaviors statistically significant (r = .124, .503, P-value < .05).