Introduction
The number of obese teenagers in a particular community is rising at an alarming rate. Thus, there is a need to develop an intervention program that will help the community reduce the number of reported cases. The proponent of this study will attempt to deliver an education program to rectify the problem. It is important to point out that it is not practical to rely only on the delivery of information using conventional teaching models. For greater efficiency, it is imperative to utilize the principles of learning theories. In this particular exercise, the cognitive learning framework will be applied to curb the problem of obesity in the said community.
Social Cognitive Theory
The best approach is to use the cognitive learning framework. However, it is best to narrow it down to the social cognitive theory with an emphasis on empowering the members of the community (Boston University School of Public Health, 2016). Insights gleaned from studying the said learning framework revealed the capability of intervention teams in persuading people to change their behavior if they incorporate the socio-cultural component of the issue. In other words, it is extremely difficult to change the behavior of obese teenagers if the members of the intervention team make the mistake of ignoring the context of the community. As a result, it is imprudent to simply bring them out of the community and lead them into a formal learning environment such as a classroom or a conference room (Bandura, 2004). Therefore, the social cognitive theory considers environmental factors and uses the same to create positive change within the community.
Application of the Theory
The intervention teams will choose a small group of participants, and in this particular case, a church group was chosen as the sub-group of the target community. The target group is comprised of parents with at least one teenage offspring suffering from the negative impact of obesity. This particular setup facilitates not only the information dissemination process but also identifies the social factors that can hinder or encourage a behavior change. For example, the teaching component of the intervention program informs both obese teenagers and their parents that the reduction of caloric intake or a significant change in diet requires a team effort so that all the members of the family must participate.
The use of the social cognitive theory also enables the intervention teams to consider the importance of providing social support. In this particular target group, the social support comes from the other members of the church. However, the members of the intervention teams are going to conduct individual interviews to find out if the said obese teenagers are struggling with a particular problem that requires the assistance of a neutral third party. The commitment to go beyond the teaching process and to look into the socio-cultural facets of the issue is just one of the important features of the social cognitive theory that will prove valuable in the said intervention program. As a result, the members of the intervention team are not only sharing their knowledge regarding obesity, they are also ready to act as confidants and counselors.
Conclusion
The alarming increase in the number of obese teenagers in a particular community requires the assistance of an effective intervention team. The members of the said intervention team decided to share their insights and knowledge on how to reduce the number of obese teenagers in the said area. The best approach is to use the principles of social cognitive theory to develop an appropriate learning program.
This particular framework was chosen because it considers the socio-cultural aspect of the said issue. As a result, intervention teams are confident that the program will succeed because it is not based only on conventional learning programs.
References
Bandura, A. (2004). Health promotions by social cognitive means. Web.
Boston University School of Public Health. (2016). The social cognitive theory. Web.