Effectiveness of a Structured Teaching Programme on Knowledge Regarding Breast Self-Examination Among Female College Students in Mangalore, India: A Pre-Experimental Study

Abstract

Background: Breast cancer remains one of the most common malignancies among women worldwide, and early detection is central to reducing its associated morbidity and mortality. Breast self-examination (BSE) is a simple, low-cost method by which women can become familiar with the normal texture of their breasts and identify changes early; however, adolescent and young adult women frequently lack accurate, structured knowledge of its purpose, timing, and technique, even when they are broadly aware of the term.
Objectives: To assess the pre-test level of knowledge regarding BSE among female college students, to implement a Structured Teaching Programme (STP), to evaluate the post-test level of knowledge following the STP, and to compare pre-test and post-test scores to determine the effectiveness of the STP.
Methods: A quantitative research approach with a pre-experimental one-group pre-test post-test design was used. Sixty female students of Srinivas Institute of Technology, Mangalore, were selected by purposive sampling. Data were collected using a two-part tool comprising a demographic proforma and a 30-item structured knowledge questionnaire, whose content validity was established by four subject experts (80% agreement). The STP was administered on Day 1 after the pre-test, and the post-test was conducted on Day 7 using the same tool. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation) and inferential statistics (paired t-test and chi-square test).
Results: Most participants (44, 73.33%) were 17–19 years old, 35 (58.33%) were second-year students, and 58 (96.67%) had previously heard of BSE. The mean pre-test knowledge score was 16.02 (SD = 5.91), rising to a mean post-test score of 27.72 (SD = 3.08) out of a maximum of 30 following the STP. The mean gain of 11.70 was statistically highly significant (paired t = 13.46, df = 59, p < 0.001). Chi-square analysis revealed no statistically significant association between pre-test knowledge and age, year of study, family income, family history of breast cancer, family type, prior awareness of BSE, or religion (all p > 0.05).
Conclusion: Female college students had inadequate structured knowledge of BSE despite general awareness of the term, and a Structured Teaching Programme produced a statistically significant, uniformly distributed improvement in knowledge across the sample. Structured teaching on BSE should be incorporated as a routine component of college health education to promote early detection of breast cancer among young women.