Comparison of Knowledge and Attitude regarding Reproductive Health between Adolescent Girls of Urban and Rural Schools in West Bengal

Introduction: Adolescents can be key driving forces in building a future of dignity for all. They are an important resource for any country. Reproductive health covers all aspects of adolescent health. In order to lead healthy, responsible, and fulfilling lives, and to protect themselves from reproductive health problems, youngsters need adequate information about the physical and psychological changes that take place during puberty, menstruation, pregnancy and childbirth. Methods: A comparative survey was conducted among 90 randomly selected adolescent girls from urban and rural schools of Bankura, West Bengal. Information was collected by administering structured knowledge questionnaire and 5-point attitude rating scale. Results: The findings revealed that 46.67% of girls from urban school and 51.11% of girls from rural school had excellent knowledge score and 65.56% of adolescent girls from urban school had positive and 61.11% of girls from rural school had fair attitude score towards reproductive health. There was no significant difference in knowledge score (t = -0.555 at p > 0.580) but significant difference in attitude score (t = 4.98 at p < 0.00) was there. There was a weak positive correlation found between knowledge and attitude scores of adolescent girls in both urban (r = 0.46) and rural (r = 0.335) schools. No significant association was found between knowledge and attitude scores and demographic characteristics of adolescent girls in both schools. Conclusion: The study concluded that there was a gap in the level of attitude of adolescent girls of urban and rural schools. So there is a need to educate adolescent girls regarding some aspects of reproductive health.