Self-efficacy, perceived susceptibility, and perceived severity significantly predicted the perceived benefits of quality sexual and reproductive health (SRH) education among Sri Lankan undergraduates, while external cues to action and perceived barriers did not.
Key Findings
Results
Self-efficacy was a statistically significant predictor of the perceived benefits of quality SRH education among Sri Lankan undergraduate students.
Data were collected from 384 non-state undergraduate students in Sri Lanka using a structured questionnaire.
Self-efficacy yielded a statistically significant coefficient estimate in multivariate regression analysis.
The Health Belief Model (HBM) was used as the conceptual framework to assess this relationship.
The finding underscores the importance of individuals' belief in their own ability to engage with SRH education.
Results
Perceived susceptibility was a statistically significant predictor of the perceived benefits of quality SRH education.
Perceived susceptibility was assessed via structured questionnaire among 384 Sri Lankan non-state undergraduate students.
Multivariate regression analysis confirmed a statistically significant coefficient estimate for perceived susceptibility.
Perceived susceptibility refers to individuals' beliefs about their likelihood of experiencing negative outcomes related to poor SRH education.
This finding aligns with the HBM framework, which posits that perceived susceptibility motivates health-protective behavior.
Results
Perceived severity was a statistically significant predictor of the perceived benefits of quality SRH education.
Perceived severity was measured alongside other HBM constructs in the structured questionnaire.
The coefficient estimate for perceived severity was statistically significant in the multivariate regression model.
Perceived severity reflects individuals' beliefs about the seriousness of consequences associated with inadequate SRH education.
Sample consisted of 384 non-state undergraduate students in Sri Lanka.
Results
External cues to action did not significantly predict the perceived benefits of quality SRH education.
External cues to action were included as one of five HBM constructs measured by the structured questionnaire.
Multivariate regression analysis found no statistically significant coefficient estimate for external cues to action.
This suggests that external prompts (e.g., media, health campaigns) may not drive perceptions of SRH education benefits in this population.
The sample comprised 384 Sri Lankan non-state undergraduate students.
Results
Perceived barriers did not significantly predict the perceived benefits of quality SRH education.
Perceived barriers were assessed as one of five HBM constructs in the structured questionnaire.
There was 'no evidence that perceived barriers predict the perceived benefits of quality SRH education' in the multivariate regression analysis.
This finding is notable given widespread skepticism toward sex education in Sri Lanka and other Asian nations.
The result suggests that perceived obstacles to SRH education do not independently shape beliefs about its benefits in this sample.
Conclusions
The Health Belief Model was found to serve as a useful conceptual framework for evaluating and designing SRH education intervention programs.
A positive philosophical framework and deductive approach were employed to justify HBM application.
The study applied HBM constructs—perceived susceptibility, perceived severity, perceived barriers, self-efficacy, external cues to action—to predict perceived benefits of SRH education.
The authors conclude that HBM 'can serve as a useful conceptual framework for such intervention programs.'
Findings are positioned as having 'significant practical implications' for developing effective SRH programs to prevent sexual abuse among adolescents.
Methods
The study population consisted of 384 non-state undergraduate students in Sri Lanka, recruited via structured questionnaire survey.
Total sample size was n=384 Sri Lankan non-state undergraduate students.
A structured questionnaire was used as the survey methodology.
The questionnaire included questions about external cues to action, self-efficacy, perceived barriers, perceived susceptibility, and perceived severity.
A deductive approach and positive philosophical framework were used to underpin the study design.
What This Means
This research suggests that how young people in Sri Lanka perceive their own ability to act (self-efficacy), how vulnerable they feel to risks (perceived susceptibility), and how serious they think those risks are (perceived severity) are all meaningfully connected to whether they see value in quality sexual and reproductive health (SRH) education. The study surveyed 384 university students using a well-established public health framework called the Health Belief Model to understand what shapes people's beliefs about the benefits of SRH education. Notably, external factors like health campaigns or peer prompts, and perceived obstacles to accessing SRH education, did not appear to be significant drivers of these beliefs in this group.
Sri Lanka, like many Asian countries, faces social resistance to including sex education in schools, even as it tries to address child sexual abuse through educational initiatives. This study provides evidence that making students feel personally capable and helping them understand their personal risk and the seriousness of consequences could be more effective strategies than simply removing barriers or increasing public awareness campaigns when designing SRH programs.
This research suggests that policymakers and educators developing SRH curricula in Sri Lanka and similar contexts should prioritize building students' confidence and personal awareness of risk rather than focusing primarily on overcoming logistical or social barriers. The findings also demonstrate that the Health Belief Model can be a practical tool for designing and evaluating SRH education programs aimed at preventing adolescent sexual abuse.
Rajapakshe W, Wickramasurendra A, Amarasinghe R, Kohilawatta Arachchige Wijerathne S, Wijesinghe N, Madhavika N. (2025). Application of the Health Belief Model (HBM) to Explore the Quality of Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) Education in Sri Lanka.. International journal of environmental research and public health. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph21121703