Effectiveness of Child-rearing Information Booklet among Adolescent Mothers: A Quasi-experimental Non-equivalent Pre-test-Post-test Control Group Study.

Background: Child-rearing is challenging for adolescent mothers at risk of providing limited care to their children because of the challenges and demands of simultaneously being an adolescent and a mother. Children aged 0-2 years depend on caregivers like their young mothers to promote their physical, emotional, social, and cognitive growth and development.

Objective: The study aimed to determine the effectiveness of the Child-rearing Information Booklet (CRIB) among adolescent mothers with children aged 0-2 years on the three dimensions of knowledge, attitude, and practices.

Methods: The study utilized the quasi-experimental non-equivalent pre-test-post-test control group design to investigate 30 intervention and 30 comparison adolescent mothers with children aged 0-2 years who met the study criteria in Baguio City from January 2019 to January 2021. The fishbowl sampling technique was used in selecting the population and the specific barangays. A validated self-made questionnaire (I-CVI of 0.95 with Cronbach's α of 0.96) determined both groups' knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAP). The study used the weighted mean for adolescent mothers' KAP while an independent sample t-test analyzed the significant change in the scores of both groups and to answer the significant difference in the pre- and post-test scores between the two groups.

Results: The results revealed that both groups are knowledgeable about child-rearing skills. Both groups have a favorable attitude when caring for their children and have a very satisfactory practice in childcare. The study also yielded a significant difference in the change of scores in the pre- and post-test scores of the two groups, specifically in knowledge and practice, while no significant difference in their attitude. It also presented a significant difference in the post-test scores between the two groups along with their knowledge (large effect size), attitude (medium effect size), and practices (large effect size).

Conclusions: Adolescent mothers have pre-existing KAP in child-rearing. The CRIB effectively enhances adolescent mothers' child-rearing knowledge and practice. Also, the increase of scores in KAP in child-rearing during the post-test may not be solely caused by the CRIB but also influenced by their age, level of education, living environment, experience in child-rearing, and age of their child. The CRIB has a high practical significance in improving the knowledge and practices among adolescent mothers but not in their attitude.