Effectiveness of an Active Learning Process for Diabetes Risk Reduction among Prediabetic Individuals in Kusuman District, Sakon Nakhon Province

Abstract

This quasi-experimental study employed a two-group pretest-posttest design to evaluate the effectiveness of an active learning process for reducing diabetes risk among individuals with prediabetes in Kusuman District, Sakon Nakhon Province. Samples consisted of 64 adults aged 35 years and older who had been screened for diabetes and had fasting blood glucose levels ranging from 100 to 125 mg/dL. All participants resided in Kusuman District and were selected using a multistage sampling technique. They were equally allocated to either an experimental group (n=32) or a comparison group (n=32). The intervention consisted of an active-learning program implemented over eight weeks. Participants in the experimental group received the active learning intervention for diabetes risk reduction, while those in the comparison group received routine standard care. Data were collected using structured questionnaires and analyzed using descriptive statistics, including frequencies, percentages, means, and standard deviations. Inferential statistics included the paired t-test and independent t-test. Statistical significance was set at p<0.05.

The results showed that after the intervention, the experimental group had significantly higher mean scores in perceived benefits of diabetes risk reduction, self-efficacy, and health-promoting behaviors for diabetes risk reduction than the comparison group at the .05 level of statistical significance (t=3.43, p=0.001; t=6.99, p<0.001; and t=3.81, p<0.001, respectively). In contrast, the mean scores of perceived barriers to diabetes risk reduction and fasting blood glucose levels in the experimental group were significantly lower than those in the comparison group at the .05 level of statistical significance (t=-7.74, p<0.001 and t=-3.48, p<0.001, respectively). The findings indicate that the active learning process effectively enhanced health perceptions and health-promoting behaviors, while also reducing blood glucose levels among individuals at risk for diabetes.