Incorporating explanatory models in planning nutrition education programmes in Thailand

An intersectoral child development services project is being undertaken in Thailand to develop a model process for providing age appropriate care and education to rural children through an integrated programme of nutrition, health and educational services designed to meet community needs and perceptions. Using behavioral analysis and explanatory models, project results show that the effectiveness of nutrition education can be facilitated by (1) recognizing the family as the unit of service, (2) focusing on solutions rather than problems, (3) using a two-stage promotional message strategy to encourage better child caretaking, and (4) viewing potential new practices as behavioral processes, rather than single entities aimed at a specific outcome. Program planning should also include the successive construction and analysis of community-based explanatory models which justify people's nutrition and health behaviors. The ultimate aim is to identify differences between explanatory models held by community members and health/nutrition educators, negotiate this conflict, and thereafter develop more practical and realistic methods for modifying behavior.