Self-efficacy expectations and self-management in children with asthma

An experimental, two group study was conducted to ascertain the relationship between an educational program of asthma self-management with behavior, knowledge, and perception of self-efficacy of children aged 7-12 years with asthma. A knowledge test, a behavior scale and a demographic data form were administered to 27 experimental and 26 control subjects in two Pediatric clinics. Subjects also maintained a diary of asthma related activities. The experimental group received formal instruction in an asthma self-management program. The control group received routine asthma education from the clinic nurses. Four subjects in each group were lost to follow-up. Changes in asthma knowledge and perception of self-efficacy were not significant between the two groups (p $>$ 0.05) but the experimental group did have a significant increase in their tests scores after treatment (p $>$ 0.01). The number of asthma self-management behaviors was also significantly higher for the experimental group (p $>$ 0.05)