Knowledge of Parents on Effects of Child Labor

Creating a safe and healthy world for our children is as a important task as any that exists. Yet millions of children around the world remain victims of poverty, illness, armed conflict, exploitive and forced labor. Child labor is a very complicated development issue, effecting human society all over the world. Child labour is any work that is likely to interfere with the child's education or harmful to his/her health, physical, mental or social development.

Exploratory research approach with descriptive survey design was adopted for the study. The sample consisted of 50 parents having children aged between 5–14 years. The tool used for the data collection was structured interview schedule. The structured interview schedule was validated by 10 experts. The reliability was established through split half method by administering to 30 parents having children aged between 5–14 years residing in Gandhinagar urban slum, under Kengeri Upanagara Primary Health Centre, Bangalore and the tool was found reliable. The data analyses by using both descriptive and inferential statistics.

Findings of the study revealed that majority 64% of the parents had moderate knowledge while 34% parents had inadequate knowledge regarding effects of child labour. The total mean of overall knowledge score was 2.68. Study also revealed that there was a statistically significant association between the knowledge score of the parents with demographic variables such as family size, education, occupation, family income and number of children at the probability level of P<0.01.

The samples had inadequate knowledge regarding the effects of child labour. The knowledge level of the parents increases with the educational status, family income and number of children they have. Hence the health professionals and social workers should take the responsibilities for conducting the awareness program on effects of child labor among parents having children aged between 5–14 years in community and schools.