How do we know when we should tailor an intervention? Using the Reasoned Action Approach to compare adults to youth on their beliefs about eating fruits and vegetables

BACKGROUND: This presentation illustrates how the Reasoned Action Approach can be used to elicit salient (top-of-the-mind) perceptions underlying behavioral decisions and to determine when beliefs differ by stage of life.

METHODS: Students (n=221) from three rural Indiana middle schools and adults (n=182) from four Indiana worksites were asked open-ended questions about one of three behaviors: eating dark green leafy vegetables (n=137); eating orange vegetables (n=126); or eating fruit (n=140). To elicit salient barriers, participants were asked “What makes it harder for you to eat…?” Content analysis identified categories (K=.877). Chi-square tests compared adults to youth on frequency of mentioning barriers.  

RESULTS: Four of the top five barriers to eating fruit and vegetables differed significantly in salience by stage in life. The most frequently mentioned barrier for both adults (32%) and youth (29%) was availability. However, more adults than youth were concerned about time (30% vs. 13%, p<.001) and cost (25% vs. 3%, p<.001); but more youth than adults were concerned about liking (29% vs. 20%, p=.026) and about strategies to improve liking such as eating with other foods (17% vs. 6%, p=.001).  

CONCLUSIONS: Availability was the most salient perceived barrier for both adults and youth. However a number of differences emerged suggesting that interventions may need to be tailored. Interventions for youth may need to address liking by introducing students to easy and fun ways of making fruits and vegetables tastier; whereas interventions for adults may need to address time and cost through environmental changes and building skills for preparation.