Social cognitions about food choice in children aged five to eight years: Feasibility and predictive validity of an age appropriate measurement

Abstract

There are currently no instruments available to measure social cognitions towards food choice in children. This study aimed to test the feasibility and predictive validity of a novel measurement tool to assess food-related social cognitions. Sixty-eight children, five to eight years old, were asked to sort cards with photographs of four fruit and four sweet/savoury snacks as a mean to measure attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control (PBC), and intention. Subsequently, food choice (dependent variable) was assessed using a laboratory food choice task in which children could gain access to sweet and savoury or fruit items, or a combination. All participants completed the tasks successfully, demonstrating feasibility of the procedure. The order in which the cards were sorted for each construct differed sufficiently and correlations between constructs were in line with previous studies. Measures of PBC, intention, attitude, and subjective norm from the mother, but not from teachers or friends, correlated significantly with subsequent food choice. It is possible to measure food-related social cognitions in children aged five to eight and these measures were predictive of observed behaviour. The new instrument can contribute to our understanding of psychological determinants of food choice in young children.

A feasibility study with process evaluation of a preschool intervention to improve child and family lifestyle behaviours

“…The ultimate target of the proposed intervention was the child whilst acknowledging that in order to reach the child, the intervention would need to act via preschool staff and parents [31, 32]. …”

“…Two behaviour change models which were identified as good frameworks for intervention development were: The Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) [ 46 ] and Operant Conditioning (OC) [ 47 ]. SCT acknowledges the role of ‘modelling’ and contextual ‘availability’ as key in influencing a child’s dietary intake [ 47 , 48 ]; especially in younger children who are potentially less influenced by peer pressure and more influenced by parent and teacher behaviours [ 31 , 32 , 49 ]. ‘Goal setting’ has demonstrated some success in adults [ 47 ] and helps people set their goals in motion in accordance with values, priorities and commitment to change [ 50 ].…”

“…Taking the family on board as a part of the intervention was integral to the generalisability and sustainability of the effects of the intervention. The ultimate target of the proposed intervention was the child whilst acknowledging that in order to reach the child, the intervention would need to act via preschool staff and parents [ 31 , 32 ].…”

Understanding fruit and vegetable consumption in children and adolescents. The contributions of affect, self-concept and habit strength

“…Knowledge about what drives children's FV intake comes mainly from applications of social cognition models in which behaviour is linked with individuals' beliefs about themselves, about the behaviour and about their environment (Michela & Contento, 1986;Michela & Wood, 1986). This research has identified a range of environmental and psychosocial correlates of FV consumption in children and adolescents, such as accessibility of FV at the home and school environments (Pearson, Biddle, & Gorely, 2009;Van Der Horst, et al, 2007), behaviour modelling, and intention to eat healthy (Backman, Haddad, Lee, Johnston, & Hodgkin, 2002;Geller & Dzewaltowski, 2009; McClain, Chappuis, Nguyen-Rodriguez, Yaroch, & Spruijt-Metz, 2009); and correlates of intentions such as parental subjective norms, perceptions of barriers (Backman, et al, 2002;Fernandes-Machado, Gellert, Goncalves, Sniehotta, & Araujo-Soares, 2016), self-efficacy (Corwin, Sargent, Rheaume, & Saunders, 1999;Domel, et al, 1996;Granner, et al, 2004;Kristjansdottir, et al, 2006;Resnicow, et al, 1997;Reynolds, Hinton, Shewchuk, & Hickey, 1999) and attitudes expressed as outcome expectations ("To eat fruit every day gives me more energy" and "To eat fruit every day makes me feel good") (Dennison & Shepherd, 1995). (Lien, Lytle, & Komro, 2002)Nonetheless, important questions remain about the ability of these models to characterise children's FV intake.…”