The Impact of E-Health Literacy Education Based on Self-Efficacy Theory on the Effective Use of Virtual Social Networks among First-Year Afghan High School Students

Abstract

Background and Aim: Adolescents spend most of their time online participating in social media activities rather than seeking scientific or health information. This study aimed to investigate the effect of e-health literacy training based on self-efficacy theory on the effective use of virtual social networks among first-year Afghan high school students in Mashhad. Materials and Methods: This quasi-experimental study used multi-stage cluster sampling in a randomized manner to create intervention and control groups. A total of 104 Afghan girls and boys first-year secondary school students were randomly selected from four self-governing refugee schools in 2024. The intervention group (53 participants) attended four training sessions, while the control group (51 participants) did not receive any intervention. Data were collected before, immediately following, and three months after the educational intervention. The following questionnaires were used to collect data: a demographic information questionnaire; the standard Sherer self-efficacy questionnaire, which had a Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficient of 0.82; the standard e-health literacy questionnaire, which had a Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficient of 0.88; and the standard social networking questionnaire, which had a Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficient of 0.85. The data were analyzed using SPSS software. The significance level was considere as P<0.05. Results: Of the 104 participating students, 53 were in the intervention group (28 girls and 25 boys), and 51 were in the control group (26 girls and 25 boys). The age of participants in the intervention group was 13.55±0.50 years. Fifty two point eight percent of them had fathers with primary education, and 64.2% of them had fathers who were workers. Thirty five point eight percent them had illiterate mothers. A significant difference was found between students’ e-health literacy and their fathers’ level of education (P<0.05). A significant difference was observed in the effective use of virtual social networks based on the father’s job and income, and the mother’s education level (P<0.05). A significant difference was reported between self-efficacy and their father’s education (P<0.05). In the intervention group, E-health literacy increased from 16.85±2.61 to 29.15±1.89, The effective use of virtual social networks decreased from 50.04±15.05 to 37.57±8.38, and self-efficacy increased from 50.96±4.78 to 64.47±5.19, which was statistically significant (P<0.0001). Conclusion: The findings showed that education can increase students’ e-health literacy and self-efficacy, as well as their ability to effectively use virtual social networks. It is recommended that schools provide opportunities to strengthen e-health literacy through curricula and create supportive environments to increase students’ self-efficacy in effectively using virtual social networks. It is also better to consider the active participation of parents and teachers in designing interventions