Comparative Analysis of Maternal Knowledge and Practices on Child Malnutrition in Rural and Urban Communities in the Western Region of Ghana
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.64261/pajhps.v1n1.008Keywords:
maternal knowledge, rural–urban disparity, child malnutrition, preventive practices, health beliefs, nutrition educationAbstract
Child malnutrition remains a critical public health concern in Ghana, with varying maternal responses across different settings. This study compares maternal knowledge, practices, and misconceptions about malnutrition between rural and urban mothers in the Western Region of Ghana. A total of 400 mothers, 200 from each setting, were surveyed using structured questionnaires. Results showed that urban mothers had significantly higher knowledge about malnutrition signs and causes and were more likely to practice exclusive breastfeeding, maintain hygiene, and offer diverse diets. Rural mothers, on the other hand, exhibited more misconceptions, with a higher prevalence of beliefs in spiritual causes, teething, and witchcraft as drivers of malnutrition. Logistic regression revealed that urban residence, maternal education, and access to nutrition information were strong predictors of good nutritional practices. The study highlights the importance of targeted, context-specific health education to bridge the rural–urban gap in child nutrition outcomes.
Keywords: maternal knowledge, rural–urban disparity, child malnutrition, Ghana, preventive practices, health beliefs, nutrition education
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Pan-African Journal of Health and Psychological Sciences

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
All articles published in the Pan-African Journal of Health and Psychological Sciences (PAJHPS) are open access and distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).
Under this license:
-
Authors retain copyright and grant the journal the right of first publication.
-
The work may be shared, copied, redistributed, and adapted for any purpose, even commercially.
-
Appropriate credit must be given to the original author(s) and the journal, along with a link to the license.
-
Users must indicate if changes were made.
-
There are no restrictions on reuse, provided the original work is properly cited.
Citation:
Authors and users must cite the original work in the following manner:
Author(s). (Year). Title of the article. Pan-African Journal of Health and Psychological Sciences, Volume(Issue), page range. https://doi.org/xx.xxxx/pajhps.vXnY.xxx
Copyright Statement:
Authors grant PAJHPS a non-exclusive license to publish the work and identify itself as the original publisher. Authors may enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version (e.g., post it to a repository or publish it in a book), with acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.