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BACKGROUND : Self-efficacy is defined as his or her belief of their capacity to produce specific performance attainments where represent the ability of positive and negative control over their own motivation, behavior, and social environment. Interventions to increase self-efficacy are a potentially effective way of changing health behavior towards attractive results, however the subject has not been systematically reviewed. This review aims to assess the relationship between self-efficacy and change in good health behaviour. METHODS : A comprehensive and extensive search of four bibliographic data bases was conducted for papers reporting health promotion and educational interventions that explicitly targeted self-efficacy in order to change health behaviour in achieving better disease control. RESULTS : Out of 314 studies, 13 were included in the review. Of these, 8 were found to have significant association between self-efficacy and specific health behaviours. However, 5 studies failed to show any significant prediction towards health behavior. Another 6 studies showed either significant mediation effect or indirect relationship of self-efficacy and health behaviours. CONCLUSIONS : Self-efficacy appears to be an important psychosocial construct that may directly or indirectly affect health behaviour to control diseases. Self-efficacy may also function as a link between effective health promotion and educational interventions and health behaviour change in disease control.

INTRODUCTION: “Doktor Muda” (DM) programme was developed by the Ministry of Health (MOH), Malaysia to train a group of pupils as peer educator for change in motivating and assisting their peers to adopt healthy practices especially in hand washing through good knowledge, positive attitude, high self-efficacy and skill to deliver health messagesAIM: This study aims to identify the association of socio demographic, knowledge, attitude, and practices with self-efficacy in proper hand washing.METHODS: A cross-sectional study using a self-administered questionnaire and observation checklists for hand washing demonstration skills.RESULT: This study showed that the subjects` knowledge (16.7%), practice (23.8%) and self-efficacy (41.7) in proper hand washing were low. Significant association were found between gender (p=0.004), academic achievements (p=0.038) and practices (p=0.003) with self-efficacy in proper hand washing.CONCLUSION: Various strategies are needed to strengthen DM role as peer educators and health change agents in school as levels of their knowledge, practice and self-efficacy were low.