Perceived knowledge and perception on nanotechnology among university students

Abstract

The main objective of this study is to assess the knowledge and perceptions of nanotechnology among health science students of UniKL RCMP in terms of knowledge, source of information, social impact, benefits, and risks of nanotechnology. A quantitative cross-sectional study was conducted among health science students, which included students from pharmacy, nursing, radiography, and physiotherapy of UniKL RCMP, Ipoh, Perak. Responses were recorded through a self-administered questionnaire. The questionnaire consists of four sections: the first section recorded the socio-demographic data, the second section was used to validate the knowledge about nanotechnology, the third section was related to the social impact of nanotechnology, and the fourth section recorded the perceptions of the benefits and risks of nanotechnology. A convenience sampling technique was adopted to collect the responses from 300 respondents. This study showed that the knowledge on nanotechnology was moderate among respondents. The main source of information about nanotechnology was the internet. With regard to the social impact, the majority of respondents agreed that nanotechnology could have an economic and occupational impact. The majority of the respondents considered that the nanotechnology will bring the highest benefits in the next two decades in health and medicine, while almost half of them believed that nanotechnology will be a risk in human health. The student community lacks information on nanotechnology, and it is required to increase awareness about the benefits of nanotechnology in the field of medicine and health care settings.