Page 141 - IJPS-10-4

International Journal of
Population Studies Household on teens’ COVID-19 prevention

linked to the fact that HBM emphasizes that people adopt Africa. The percentage of young people who did not
preventive health promotion measures when they think the change their behaviors positively or adopt any preventive
advantages outweigh the challenges. The adolescents must measures during the COVID-19 period is of concern for
have found that the challenges were too great to change improving their health and well-being in the country.
their behaviors. The findings showed that adolescents from The low percentage of adopting any form of preventive
households with access to water were less likely to adopt measure during the pandemic observed in this study could
any form of preventive measure during the pandemic be due to the challenges faced by many households seeking
compared with those with no access to water. This is a the means of survival as there were total lockdown rules,
surprising result for us because both national and global which made many individuals from an impoverished
agencies advocated for regular handwashing during the household unable to attempt to improve their situation.
COVID-19 pandemic. It could also be a result of how the The other reasons could be poverty, lack of access to their
questions related to water were framed. On the contrary, farmlands, and disruptions in the supply and provision of
it could be that the respondents did not understand the food (Tripathi et al., 2021).
question based on their level of education, as the interviews The findings of this study have significant implications
were conducted through telephone calls; hence, a better for a theoretical understanding of the individual and
approach for the adolescents to understand the question household-level factors associated with behavioral changes,
and provide appropriate responses could be a face-to-face as well as preventive measures adopted during the COVID-19
interview. This finding confirms the assumption of the period among youths in South Africa. In addition, the
HBM that youth’s increased knowledge may contribute to findings draw attention to individual, and household-level
their understanding of the benefits of adopting preventive disruptions and challenges adolescents encountered during
measures during pandemics. It shows that when an the pandemic in South Africa. It has also helped to identify
individual has better knowledge of an intervention, such as the vulnerability of household conditions that need to be
the preventive measures rolled out to minimize the spread supported and improved during the COVID-19 period
of the COVID-19 pandemic, they are more likely to accept and any other infectious outbreak in the future. This is to
such an intervention. ensure that young people from vulnerable households are
4.1. Limitations of the study supported to make decisions that will improve their health
and well-being. Hence, the findings from this study will
This study has certain limitations that should be taken into guide health policymakers in designing health policies and
account. First, causal inferences are limited by the study’s interventions that address the unique health-care needs of
cross-sectional design. Second, because participants young people and support households during pandemics to
were asked to express their attitudes about preventative avert the future consequences of COVID-19 on adolescent
health-seeking behavior in the survey rather than in the health in the country.
current year, recall bias may have affected their responses.
Third, the dataset lacked information on a few significant 5. Conclusion
outcomes and independent variables, including a woman’s The study revealed that the behavior changes and
sexual activity, religion, and number of children. As such, preventive measures taken by adolescents were influenced
carrying out an exhaustive investigation on the impact by household-level characteristics during the COVID-19
of COVID-19 on South African households during the pandemic in South Africa. This is evident from the
pandemic proved to be difficult. Despite its shortcomings, increased proportion of adolescents who neither changed
this is a study that offered insight into adolescents’ changes their behavior nor adopted any preventive measures during
in behaviors and precautionary measures adopted during the pandemic. The impact of the COVID-19 infection on
the COVID-19 era in South Africa. To address the damaging household living conditions in many communities may
effects of the pandemic on youth’s health, the study will have contributed to this lack of behavioral change and
therefore inform adolescents’ health programming during preventive action. The study also established that lack of
any pandemic such as COVID-19.
access to basic amenities such as social grants, water, and
Despite the fact that the full impact of the COVID-19 electricity altered the positive behaviors of youths toward
pandemic on adolescents’ health and well-being the pandemic, thereby limiting their understanding of the
experiences is not fully investigated in South Africa, this infection’s severity. This resulted in many young individuals
study provides a mini understanding of the effects of falling victim to the COVID-19 infection in South Africa
household-level factors during the COVID-19 period due to limited knowledge of the symptoms of the infection.
on behavioral changes, as well as preventive measures Future studies should explore how community factors
adopted among adolescents aged 15 – 24 years in South such as poverty, media exposure, and education affect

Volume 10 Issue 4 (2024) 135 https://doi.org/10.36922/ijps.2751