Effect of Dietary Education Experience (Home, School, and Mass Media) on Food Consumer Information literacy

Abstract

Objectives: This study examined the effects of dietary education experience (home, school, and mass media) on food consumer information literacy. Methods: The study subjects were 454 adult consumers who answered a structured questionnaire. The questionnaires addressed the subjects' demographics, dietary education experience (home, school, and mass media), and food consumer information literacy. The data were analyzed through frequency analysis, mean, standard deviation, t-test, ANOVA, Pearson's correlation, and multiple regression analysis using SPSS Win 24.0. Results: First, the scores of mass media education experience were 3.41 ± 0.64, which was the highest, and 3.15 ± 0.74 for school education experience, which was the lowest. Second, the level of sub-literacies (task definition, information seeking strategy, location and access, use of information, synthesis, and evaluation) showed scores of 3.20 ± 0.72 3.47 ± 0.68, which were slightly higher than the median. The synthesis literacy was the highest, as opposed to the information seeking strategy literacy, which was the lowest. The location and access and synthesis literacy were higher in women. Third, a significant positive(+) relationship was observed between all sub-literacies and each of three dietary education experiences (home, school and mass media). According to multiple regression analysis, the major variables influencing the sub-literacies of food consumer information literacy were home education, mass media, and school education in that order. Conclusions: The dietary education experience was the highest through mass media. The factor that showed the highest food consumer information literacy was synthesis. The factors influencing the food consumer information literacy were dietary education experience through home, school, and mass media.