Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2010
Abstract
Objective—Characterize the process of family vegetable selection (especially cruciferous, deep orange, and dark green leafy vegetables); demonstrate the usefulness of Exchange Theory (how family norms and past experiences interact with rewards and costs) for interpreting the data.
Design—Eight focus groups, two with each segment (men/women vegetable-likers/dislikers based on a screening form). Participants completed a vegetable intake form.
Setting—Rural Appalachian Pennsylvania.
Participants—61 low-income, married/cohabiting men (n=28) and women (n=33).
Analysis—Thematic analysis within Exchange Theory framework for qualitative data. Descriptive analysis, t-tests and chi-square tests for quantitative data.
Results—Exchange Theory proved useful for understanding that regardless of sex or vegetable liker/ disliker status, meal preparers see more costs than rewards to serving vegetables. Past experience plus expectations of food preparer role and of deference to family member preferences supported a family norm of serving only vegetables acceptable to everyone. Emphasized vegetables are largely ignored due to unfamiliarity; family norms prevented experimentation and learning through exposure.
Conclusions and Implications—Interventions to increase vegetable consumption of this audience could 1) alter family norms about vegetables served, 2) change perceptions of past experiences, 3) reduce social and personal costs of serving vegetables and 4) increase tangible and social rewards of serving vegetables.
Recommended Citation
Wenrich, T., Browne, L., & Miller-Day, M. (2010). Family members' influence on family meal vegetable choices. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, 42(4), 225-234. DOI: 10.1016/j.jneb.2009.05.006
Copyright
Elsevier
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Included in
Dietetics and Clinical Nutrition Commons, Family, Life Course, and Society Commons, Food Science Commons, Inequality and Stratification Commons, Medicine and Health Commons, Place and Environment Commons, Public Health Education and Promotion Commons, Rural Sociology Commons
Comments
NOTICE: this is the author’s version of a work that was accepted for publication in Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A definitive version was subsequently published in Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, volume 42, issue 4, in 2010. DOI: 10.1016/j.jneb.2009.05.006
The Creative Commons license below applies only to this version of the article.