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Research article
Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of tertiary education students in regard to air pollution in Windhoek, Namibia: a cross sectional study
HAUSHIKU KEMBA
University of Pretoria
Corresponding Author
ORCiD: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0952-405X
License:
This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License. Read Full License
Background: Knowing the residents' knowledge, attitude, and practices to air pollution is necessary for developing interventions specific to that population. Air pollution remains a neglected environmental concern in Windhoek, Namibia and people’s perceptions about air pollution and health have not been documented. This study investigated the knowledge, attitudes and practices of tertiary students to air pollution in Windhoek.
Methods: Students from five tertiary institutions in Windhoek were included in cross sectional study. A previously validated questionnaire was used to collect data from the study participants. Frequency and a corresponding percentage were reported for categorical data, whereas the association between knowledge of air pollution and perceptions was evaluated using the Chi-square test. Kruskal Wallis rank test was used to assess the statistical difference in knowledge, attitudes and practices. Data analysis was performed using STATA 15 and evaluated at a 5% level of significance
Results: More than half (59.4%) of the respondents thought that air pollution was a major problem, while over 90% knew that air pollution could negatively impact health. The media was found to be the main source of information for respondents (91.1%). Despite having the knowledge, less than a third (27%) of the respondents regularly took action out of concern of air pollution. There was a statistically significant association between knowledge, attitudes, and practices to air pollution (all P < 0.05).
Conclusions: Air pollution interventions targeting tertiary students should be aimed at informing them on ways in which they could contribute individually and collectively to reducing air pollution and its negative effects.
Keywords
Air pollution, Windhoek, Namibia, Tertiary students
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CURRENT STATUS: Under Revision
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Posted 21 Sep, 2020
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Editorial decision: Major revision
On 25 Nov, 2020
Review #4 received
Received 24 Nov, 2020
Reviewer #4 agreed
On 19 Nov, 2020
Review #1 received
Received 07 Oct, 2020
Reviewer #3 agreed
On 29 Sep, 2020
Review #3 received
Received 29 Sep, 2020
Review #2 received
Received 28 Sep, 2020
Reviewer #2 agreed
On 28 Sep, 2020
Reviewer #1 agreed
On 27 Sep, 2020
Reviewers invited
Invitations sent on 25 Sep, 2020
Editor assigned
On 17 Sep, 2020
Submission checks complete
On 16 Sep, 2020
Editor invited
On 16 Sep, 2020
No comments provided
Editorial decision: Major revision
On 18 Aug, 2020
Review #2 received
Received 16 Aug, 2020
Reviewer #2 agreed
On 27 Jul, 2020
Review #1 received
Received 24 Jul, 2020
Reviewer #1 agreed
On 22 Jul, 2020
Reviewers invited
Invitations sent on 20 Jul, 2020
Editor assigned
On 29 Jun, 2020
Submission checks complete
On 28 Jun, 2020
Editor invited
On 28 Jun, 2020
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Subject Areas
Health Economics & Outcomes Research
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This preprint is under consideration at BMC Public Health. A preprint is a preliminary version of a manuscript that has not completed peer review at a journal. Research Square does not conduct peer review prior to posting preprints. The posting of a preprint on this server should not be interpreted as an endorsement of its validity or suitability for dissemination as established information or for guiding clinical practice.
Learn more about In Review
Research article
Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of tertiary education students in regard to air pollution in Windhoek, Namibia: a cross sectional study
HAUSHIKU KEMBA
University of Pretoria
Corresponding Author
ORCiD: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0952-405X
Badges
Prescreen
This manuscript passed our Prescreen assessment
Complete author information
Appropriate declaration statements
Potential risks to human health
Prescreen
Peer Review Timeline
CURRENT STATUS: Under Revision
Version 2
Posted 21 Sep, 2020
No community comments so far
Editorial decision: Major revision
On 25 Nov, 2020
Review #4 received
Received 24 Nov, 2020
Reviewer #4 agreed
On 19 Nov, 2020
Review #1 received
Received 07 Oct, 2020
Reviewer #3 agreed
On 29 Sep, 2020
Review #3 received
Received 29 Sep, 2020
Review #2 received
Received 28 Sep, 2020
Reviewer #2 agreed
On 28 Sep, 2020
Reviewer #1 agreed
On 27 Sep, 2020
Reviewers invited
Invitations sent on 25 Sep, 2020
Editor assigned
On 17 Sep, 2020
Submission checks complete
On 16 Sep, 2020
Editor invited
On 16 Sep, 2020
No comments provided
Editorial decision: Major revision
On 18 Aug, 2020
Review #2 received
Received 16 Aug, 2020
Reviewer #2 agreed
On 27 Jul, 2020
Review #1 received
Received 24 Jul, 2020
Reviewer #1 agreed
On 22 Jul, 2020
Reviewers invited
Invitations sent on 20 Jul, 2020
Editor assigned
On 29 Jun, 2020
Submission checks complete
On 28 Jun, 2020
Editor invited
On 28 Jun, 2020
Metrics
Comments: 0
PDF Downloads: ...
HTML Views: ...
Subject Areas
Health Economics & Outcomes Research
License:
This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License. Read Full License
Background: Knowing the residents' knowledge, attitude, and practices to air pollution is necessary for developing interventions specific to that population. Air pollution remains a neglected environmental concern in Windhoek, Namibia and people’s perceptions about air pollution and health have not been documented. This study investigated the knowledge, attitudes and practices of tertiary students to air pollution in Windhoek.
Methods: Students from five tertiary institutions in Windhoek were included in cross sectional study. A previously validated questionnaire was used to collect data from the study participants. Frequency and a corresponding percentage were reported for categorical data, whereas the association between knowledge of air pollution and perceptions was evaluated using the Chi-square test. Kruskal Wallis rank test was used to assess the statistical difference in knowledge, attitudes and practices. Data analysis was performed using STATA 15 and evaluated at a 5% level of significance
Results: More than half (59.4%) of the respondents thought that air pollution was a major problem, while over 90% knew that air pollution could negatively impact health. The media was found to be the main source of information for respondents (91.1%). Despite having the knowledge, less than a third (27%) of the respondents regularly took action out of concern of air pollution. There was a statistically significant association between knowledge, attitudes, and practices to air pollution (all P < 0.05).
Conclusions: Air pollution interventions targeting tertiary students should be aimed at informing them on ways in which they could contribute individually and collectively to reducing air pollution and its negative effects.
Figure 1
Figure 2
Due to technical limitations, full-text HTML conversion of this manuscript could not be completed. However, the manuscript can be downloaded and accessed as a PDF.
Due to technical limitations, tables 1-4 are only available as a download in the supplemental files section.