Abstract

KNOWLEDGE REGARDING GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT OF INFANTS AMONG MOTHERS

Anujalekshmi V. L., Anila K. P.*, Indukala C. K. and Rafia Islam*

.

Abstract

Introduction: A healthy adult emerges from a healthy infant, and the parent plays a vital role in keeping the child healthy. Objectives: 1. Identify the level of knowledge among mothers regarding the growth and development of infants. 2. Find an association between mothers' level of knowledge and selected socio-demographic variables. 3. Prepare an information booklet for mothers on the growth and development of infants. Methodology: A descriptive research design was adopted for this study. 100 Sample was collected by using a nonprobability convenience sampling technique. The data was collected using a self-developed structured knowledge questionnaire. The data was analyzed using descriptive (frequency, percentage) and inferential (Chi-square test) statistics. Result: Among 100 mothers, 77(77%) had average knowledge regarding the growth and development of infants. The mean knowledge was 14.75, with 3.810 as the standard deviation. Statistically, a significant association was found between the type of family and knowledge of the mother regarding the growth and development of infants, with X2 values of 5.115 and 0.05 levels of significance. A significant association (X2 = 4.328) was found between knowledge of the mother and sources of health information regarding the growth and development of infants at a 0.05 level of significance. Conclusion: The study findings showed that most mothers had average knowledge regarding the growth and development of infants. There was a significant association between the type of family and sources of health information regarding the growth and development of infants p

Keywords: Knowledge, growth and development, Infant, Mother.