141st APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition

Home Events & Meetings Annual Meeting Schedule & Program

Recorded Annual Meeting Presentations (RAMP) are now available for purchase.
Only $90 for presenters, $140 for registered attendees and $200 for non-attendees.

Online Program

282822
Using theory of planned behavior to examine HPV vaccination among college students


Monday, November 4, 2013 : 10:30 a.m. - 10:45 a.m.

Alireza Geshnizjani, PhD, MPH, MS, Community Health Education and Recreation, University of Maine, Farmington, ME
Kristen Jozkowski, PhD, Public Health, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR
Susan E. Middlestadt, PhD, Department of Applied Health Science, School of Public Health, Bloomington, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN
Background: HPV is a salient public health issue and primary cause of cervical cancer. Women under the age of 25 are at highest risk for HPV infection with the typical prevalence between 28% and 46%. The HPV vaccine can help reduce the spread of HPV and alleviate costs associated with the disease. The purpose of this study was to examine the psychosocial determinants that can contribute to the behavior of getting the HPV vaccine by utilizing the Theory of Planned behavior (TPB) as a conceptual framework.

Methods: Data was collected from 279 college women at a large Midwest university. The TPB-based quantitative survey was developed using a salient-belief elicitation method and included 98 items including demographic and health behavior variables as well as TPB constructs. Multiple and sequential multiple regression were conducted to examine predictors of intention to get the HPV vaccine.

Results: Results indicated that age, perceived susceptibility and severity to cervical cancer, attitude, perceived norm, and perceived behavioral control were the primary determinants influencing vaccination behavior among females (R2 = 0.55). In addition, the global constructs of TPB--attitude (β=0.36), norm (β=0.40), and perceived behavioral control (β=0.13)--predicted intention to get the HPV vaccine above and beyond the demographic and health behavior variables.

Implications: Utilizing theory-based approaches to design interventions may be beneficial to increase vaccination behavior among college females. Interventions designed to change individuals' attitudes, perceived societal norms, and remove perceived barriers of getting the HPV vaccine may be the most effective in increasing vaccination rates among college females.

Learning Areas:

Advocacy for health and health education
Implementation of health education strategies, interventions and programs
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs
Public health or related research
Social and behavioral sciences

Learning Objectives:
Analyze the relevance of Theory of Planned Behavior in understanding the behavior of getting the HPV vaccine among college women Identify the role of perceived consequences, perceived social referents (subjective and descriptive norm), and perceived behavioral control in getting the HPV vaccine Describe implications for approaches to increase the rate of HPV vaccination Examine the role of perceived susceptibility and severity to cervical cancer on HPV vaccination

Keyword(s): Reproductive Health, STD

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have a PhD and MPH in health behavior. I have conducted research projects in the field of sexual health.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 3167.0: New research on HPV