Using Positive Deviance Techniques to Improve Smoking Cessation Outcomes in New South Wales Prison Settings

Using Positive Deviance Techniques to Improve Smoking Cessation Outcomes in New South Wales Prison Settings

Introduction

The positive deviance technique is a technique developed to bring about change in the behavior of people by using some uncommon individuals in the community. For instance, the use of some children who receive sufficient nutrition to influence others results in the entire community following the practices that ultimately lead to a change in behavior of the community (Pascale, Sternin & Sternin, 2010).

Positive Deviance Techniques in Vietnam

Positive deviance technique is an effective way to improve the overall health of the society. This technique has been tested in the 1970's resulting in positive outcomes. The result of the studies showed that there was a positive relationship in the use of positive deviance technique and the health of the community. This concept uses the beneficial, uncommon behavior of some members of the community to develop plans to improve the health. It has been studied that the community can provide the best solutions to health issues because they know exactly what is required in order to ensure that the health of the community improves. This method is considered to be more effective than determining methods of improvement and implementing them in the community (Sternin & Choo, 2000).

This method is an uncommon means by which people who practice it benefit compared to other people in the society. This method of behavior change is sustainable, acceptable, and affordable and can be implemented in every culture. In Vietnam, it was observes that parents usually fed their children vegetables, beans, and eggs. The positive deviant behavior focused on making parents to wash the hands of the children and prepare their food using hygienic methods. The result is that the overall health of the children improved by providing them the same quantity of food but hygienic food (Watanabe, 2005).

Positive deviance related to nutrition plan related to children in poor families who develop positively despite the issues being faced by the community. Such children then lead other families to manage their children in a way by which they would also get sufficient nutrition. Although every family in the community may experience the same level of poverty and malnutrition, there will always be some people in the community who would provide adequate nutrition to their children by developing positive deviance technique in ...