Health behaviour survey among undergraduate university students in Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) – Malaysian’s Perspective

Principal Investigator

Prof Dr Sarinah Low Abdullah
Dean’s Office, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya
 lowwy(at)um.edu.my
 +603-7967 5729

Executive Summary

Health behaviours are activities undertaken by people in order to protect, promote or maintain health, and to prevent disease. Knowledge about behaviour-health links (or risk awareness) is an important factor in an informed choice concerning healthy life-style. Furthermore, health attitudes and beliefs of certain health behaviours are associated with the actual practice of such behaviours.

Studies of health behaviour in low and middle income including ASEAN countries are important since the mortality and morbidity from common causes such as coronary heart disease and cancers differs widely across countries with various cultures.

Health behaviours that are formed during adolescence can have a significant impact on the occurrence of future illnesses. Therefore, it is important to study the health behaviours of young people particularly university students, who are an educated elite of young men and women, whereby their attitudes and habits are of importance to opinion formation and policy development in the future. This study aims to determine the health behaviours and associated beliefs in university students from Malaysia (or ASEAN countries).

The objectives of this project are:

1. To describe the profile of health behaviours and associated beliefs in university students from Malaysia (or ASEAN countries), and the relationship between behaviour, beliefs and risk awareness.
2. To investigate differences in health behaviour, self-rated health and attitudes to health in students from Malaysia (or ASEAN countries) and between geographic regions within Southeast Asia.
3. To determine associations between health behaviour, psychological well-being and self-rated health from Malaysia or ASEAN countries and global perspective.