Effects of Potential Support Program on Drowning Prevention among Primary School Students in Nakhon Si Thammarat Province, Thailand

In this study, we aimed to see how a student potential support program affected drowning prevention among primary school students in Nakhon Si Thammarat. This study was quasi-experimental. The sample consisted of students in Grades 1–6 who were randomly selected based on the inclusion criteria. The experimental and control groups had 120 participants. The experimental group was given the program (House, 1981), while the control group was to resume normal activities. The program lasted 8 weeks. The research instruments and data collection included the program and assessment forms on knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors in drowning prevention. Descriptive statistics, Chi-square statistics, paired sample t-tests, and independent t-tests were employed for the analysis of the data. The results show that the samples were 7–12 years of age (M = 9.50, SD = 1.72), with male and female students accounting for 37.5, and 62.5 percent, respectively; and 73.33 percent of them lived with their parents. The mean scores of the students in the control and experimental groups before using the program had no statistically significant differences in knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors ( p > 0.05). As for the mean scores of the students’ potential for drowning prevention in the experimental group before and after using the program, it was found that after the program there was a marked increase in all aspects with a statistically significant difference ( p < 0.001): before and after in knowledge (M = 17.08, SD = 3.22; M = 19.15, SD = 1.79, respectively), before and after in attitudes (M = 48.48, SD = 6.24; M = 55.23, SD = 4.66, respectively), and before and after in behaviors (M = 17.97, SD = 3.13; M = 21.00, SD = 2.50, respectively). The mean scores of the students’ potential for drowning prevention in the experimental group after using the program was higher than in the control group, with statistically significant differences in all aspects ( p < 0.001): in the experimental group, knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors (M = 19.15, SD = 1.79; M = 55.23, SD = 4.66; M = 21.00, SD = 2.50; respectively); and in the control group, knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors (M = 16.15, SD = 3.22; M = 48.37, SD = 3.61; M = 17.85, SD = 2.64; respectively). The program can help students develop better drowning prevention knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors. It can assist students in being able to protect themselves from drowning in risky situations.