Expanding the theory of planned behavior to predict healthy eating behaviors

Abstract

Purpose – This paper aims to test whether overall and specific healthy eating behaviors and intentions could be better predicted by expanding the theory of planned behavior (TPB) to include a healthy eater identity. Major health organizations suggest increasing consumption of fruits, vegetables and whole grains to address the growing number of overweight and obese individuals, yet researchers have questioned the degree to which existing behavioral intervention programs sufficiently explain healthy eating behaviors. Design/methodology/approach – Adult women (N = 79) completed questionnaires related to TPB components and healthy eater identity. Participants then recorded food consumption for four days using food diaries and food frequency questionnaires. Findings – Using hierarchical multiple regressions, the authors demonstrated that identity as a healthy eater was a significant predictor of healthy eating intentions beyond the TPB components and a significant predictor of fruit and low-fat dairy consumption and overall healthy eating behaviors. Research limitations/implications – Despite the limitation of correlational data from a homogenous population, results support previous research and add to existing literature by demonstrating the unique contribution identity has in predicting specific healthy diet behaviors of fruit and low-fat dairy consumption. Originality/value – Findings advance our understanding of how young women think about nutrition and underscore which healthy eating behaviors might need to be directly targeted in interventions if such behaviors fall outside of the scope of common conceptions of what it means to be a “healthy eater”.

Correlational study and randomised controlled trial for understanding and changing red meat consumption: The role of eating identities

“…Self-identity as healthy eater did not explain additional variance in intention to reduce consumption of red meat, consistent with Povey et al, (2001), although it has been shown to be significant for other healthy-eating behaviours (e.g., Brouwer & Mosack, 2015;Carfora, et al, 2016a). Moreover, the finding that meat-eating identity explained intentions about RMC was in line with findings of Allen and Ng (2003), which demonstrated that red meat identification had a positive correlation with RMC.…”

Theory of planned behavior applied to fish consumption in modern Metropolitan Lima

“…Behavioral intention, in turn, is seen as a function of attitudes, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control related to that specific behavior (Ajzen, 1991). The perceived behavioral control, attitudes and subjective norms will predict intentions (Brouwer & Mosack, 2015). However, some question the degree to which the primary components of the TPB (i.e., attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control) sufficiently explain intention and behavior because the level of prediction for intention varies quite dramatically (Rise et al, 2010).…”

“…It is possible that those who currently eat fish perceived related past experiences more positively than those who do not (Mitterer-Daltoé et al, 2013), causing a higher fish-eating intention and, thus, consumption frequency. Likewise, consumers characterized by a healthy lifestyle will be prone to healthy diets (Brouwer & Mosack, 2015) composed of fish.…”

Towards Building Sustainable Consumption: A Study of Second-Hand Buying Intentions

“…The TPB is accepted as valid and is widely used for examining any type of people's behavior [49]. It was used by numerous researchers for buying and consuming behavior explanation, for example, for predicting healthy eating behaviors [50,51], socially responsible consumption [8], and pro-environmental buying intentions, like consumers' green hotel visit intention [52].…”