Factors affecting the intention of nuclear disaster response activities in paramedic students

Abstract

Aim: This study was conducted to clarify the factors that influence the willingness and awareness of paramedic training course students to respond to a nuclear disaster.

Method: An anonymous questionnaire survey was administered to 186 students in the paramedic training course, and multivariate analysis was performed.

Results: Factors that directly affected the behavior of students in the paramedic training course were “radiation risk perception” and “behavioral control”, while “attitudes / norms” and “benefits” had slight direct effect on behavior. On the other hand, the degree of those effects was found to vary by the students’ background (school division, geographical environment, etc).

Conclusion: Factors that affect the willingness and awareness of paramedic training students to respond to a nuclear disaster have been identified. This study suggest that it is important to take into account both the commonalities in students’ awareness and the variety of their different backgrounds when providing guidance of nuclear disasters.