Social Cognitive Predictors of College Students' Fruit and Vegetable Intake
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Utah State University DigitalCommons@USU All Graduate Theses and Dissertations Graduate Studies 5-2009 Social Cognitive Predictors of College Students' Fruit and Vegetable Intake Denice C. Ahlstrom Utah State University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/etd Part of the Education Commons Recommended Citation Ahlstrom, Denice C., "Social Cognitive Predictors of College Students' Fruit and Vegetable Intake" (2009). All Graduate Theses and Dissertations. 433. https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/etd/433 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate Studies at DigitalCommons@USU. It has been accepted for inclusion in All Graduate Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@USU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. SOCIAL COGNITIVE PREDICTORS OF COLLEGE STUDENTS’ FRUIT AND VEGETABLE INTAKE by Denice C. Ahlstrom A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE in Health, Physical Education and Recreation Approved: ______________________________ _____________________________ Matthew Flint, PhD Julie Gast, PhD Major Professor Committee Member ______________________________ _____________________________ Tamara Vitale, MS, RD Byron R. Burnham, EdD Committee Member Dean of Graduate Studies UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY Logan, Utah 2009 ii Copyright © Denice C. Ahlstrom 2009 All Rights Reserved iii ABSTRACT Social Cognitive Factors Related to College Students’ Fruit and Vegetable Intake by Denice C. Ahlstrom, Master of Science Utah State University, 2009 Major Professor: Matthew Flint, PhD Department: Health, Physical Education, and Recreation This study examined the social cognitive theory factors of home availability of fruits and vegetables, nutrition knowledge, food preparation ability, and cooking self-efficacy and the demographic factors of race/ethnicity, age, gender, marital status, living situation, and meal plan participation in relation to college students’ fruit and vegetable consumption. The study sample was comprised of students attending on-campus classes at Utah State University during spring semester of 2009. Data were collected via traditional pencil-and-paper surveys distributed during classes with students in varying stages of their college education and from different fields of study. In total, 207 surveys were used for the linear regression analysis. Race/ethnicity was not included in the regression model due to lack of sufficient racial/ethnic diversity. Of the remaining variables, availability of fruits and vegetables in the home, cooking self-efficacy, and meal plan participation were found to be significant predictors of college students’ fruit and vegetable consumption. Availability in the home was the strongest predictor of fruit and vegetable intake in this sample. (122 pages) iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Many thanks to my committee members, Drs. Matthew Flint, Julie Gast, and Tamara Vitale, for their support and help throughout this entire process. Thanks to my peers and friends in the program who have been willing to listen to my ideas and give me encouragement when I needed it. Special thanks to my parents, who had to read the transcript multiple times. Most importantly, thank you Doug. You stood by me when I was running at full speed, and pushed me forward when I wanted to quit. This would not have been possible without your love, support, encouragement, and patience. Denice C. Ahlstrom v CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT.......................................................................................................................iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .................................................................................................iv LIST OF TABLES............................................................................................................vii CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................... 1 Problem Statement................................................................................................. 4 Significance of the Study....................................................................................... 5 Definition of Terms ............................................................................................... 6 2. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE................................................................................ 8 Fruit and Vegetable Recommendations................................................................. 8 College Students’ Fruit and Vegetable Intake ....................................................... 9 Social Cognitive Theory ...................................................................................... 14 Environment: Access to Fruits and Vegetables in the Home............................... 17 Behavioral Capability: Nutrition Knowledge ...................................................... 28 Behavioral Capability: Food Preparation Ability ................................................ 36 Cooking Self-Efficacy......................................................................................... 43 Summary.............................................................................................................. 52 3. METHODS .................................................................................................................. 53 Theoretical Framework........................................................................................ 53 Research Design.................................................................................................. 54 Sample and Population ........................................................................................ 54 Instrumentation .................................................................................................... 55 Data Collection Procedures.................................................................................. 61 Data Analysis....................................................................................................... 62 Summary.............................................................................................................. 63 4. RESULTS .................................................................................................................... 65 Sample Demographics......................................................................................... 65 Research Question 1 ............................................................................................ 65 Research Question 2 ............................................................................................ 67 Research Question 3 ............................................................................................ 68 Research Question 4 ............................................................................................ 68 Research Question 5 ............................................................................................ 69 Scale Reliability................................................................................................... 71 vi 5. DISCUSSION.............................................................................................................. 73 Conclusions.......................................................................................................... 73 Implications for Health Education....................................................................... 82 Future Research ................................................................................................... 85 REFERENCES ................................................................................................................. 87 APPENDIXES .................................................................................................................. 94 Appendix A. Survey Instrument .......................................................................... 95 Appendix B. Pilot Study Survey........................................................................ 109 Appendix C. IRB Approval ............................................................................... 111 Appendix D. Letter of Information.................................................................... 113 vii LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1 Research Questions and Statistical Analysis Methods ............................................ 64 2 Sample Demographics ............................................................................................. 66 3 Summary of Simultaneous Regression Analysis for Availability, Knowledge, Food Preparation, and Self-Efficacy ................................................... 67 4 Summary of Simultaneous Regression Analysis for Age, Gender, Marital Status, Living Situation, and Meal Plan Participation ............................................. 70 5 Scale Reliability Measures....................................................................................... 71 6 Results of Current Study Compared to Previous Research...................................... 74 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Eating a diet high in fruits and vegetables has been shown to reduce the risk of many chronic diseases, including stroke, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and certain types of cancer, and can promote overall health (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services [USDHHS], 2005a). The American Cancer Society, American Heart Association, and other prominent health agencies have acknowledged