Effects of University Students’ Perceived Food Literacy on Ecological Eating Behavior towards Sustainability
Abstract
:1. Introduction
- (1)
- To analyze the importance of food literacy on university students and ecological behaviors for achieving a sustainable society.
- (2)
- To analyze the effects of university students’ perceived food literacy on ecological eating behavior towards sustainability.
- (3)
- To analyze the moderating effect of gender differences on the relationships among all variables.
2. Theoretical Background and Research Hypothesis
2.1. Food Literacy
2.2. Ecological Eating Behavior
2.3. Relationships among the Constructs
2.3.1. Relationship between Food Preparation Skills and Ecological Eating Behavior
2.3.2. Relationship between Reading Labels and Budgeting and Ecological Eating Behavior
2.3.3. Relationships between Healthy Snack Styles, Healthy Food Stockpiling and Ecological Eating Behavior
2.3.4. Relationship between Resilience and Resistance and Ecological Eating Behavior
2.3.5. Relationship between Social and Conscious Eating and Ecological Eating Behavior
2.3.6. Moderating Role of Gender Differences
3. Research Methodology
3.1. Research Model
3.2. Sample and Data Collection
3.3. Instrument Development
3.4. Data Analysis
4. Results
4.1. Measurement Model
4.2. Research Hypothesis
5. Discussion and Implications
5.1. Conclusions and Discussion
5.2. Theoretical and Practical Implications
5.3. Limitations and Future Research
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Characteristic | N | Percentage |
---|---|---|
Gender | ||
Male | 165 | 41.8 |
Female | 230 | 58.2 |
Grade | ||
Freshman | 67 | 17.0 |
Sophomore | 90 | 22.8 |
Junior | 99 | 25.1 |
Senior | 139 | 35.2 |
Education level | ||
Community college degree (2 years) | 50 | 12.7 |
University degree (4 years) | 345 | 87.3 |
Major | ||
Food-related major | 111 | 28.1 |
Others | 284 | 71.9 |
Construct | Standardized Estimate | t-Value | CCR a | Cronbach’s Alpha |
---|---|---|---|---|
Food Preparation Skills | 0.888 | 0.924 | ||
FL1 Are you able to prepare fresh vegetables in different ways? (cooking, steaming or stir frying, or in different dishes?) | 0.816 | fixed | ||
FL2 Do you find it difficult to prepare a meal with more than five fresh ingredients? | 0.851 | 20.106 *** | ||
FL3 Are you able to alter a recipe yourself? For example, if you are missing one of the ingredients? | 0.841 | 19.727 *** | ||
FL4 Are you able to prepare fresh fish in different ways? (grilling, pan frying or stewing, or in different dishes?) | 0.766 | 17.271 *** | ||
FL5 Are you able to prepare a meal using fresh ingredients? So without pre-packed and processed foods? | 0.880 | 21.128 *** | ||
FL6 Are you able to see, smell or feel the quality of fresh foods? (meat, fish or fruit?) | 0.781 | 17.755 *** | ||
Resilience and Resistance | 0.856 | 0.894 | ||
FL7 Are you able to say “no” to tasty snacks if you want to? (birthday treats or finger foods?) | 0.739 | fixed | ||
FL8 Imagine that you are at a place where you see and smell tasty foods. Are you able to resist the temptation of buying them? (at the train station, the petrol station, or at the bakery?) | 0.716 | 14.090 *** | ||
FL9 Are you able to eat healthily when you feel stressed? | 0.817 | 16.225 *** | ||
FL10 Do you choose foods that are in line with your mood? For example, if you are sad or annoyed? | 0.693 | 13.604 *** | ||
FL11 Are you able to eat healthily if the situation deviates from a regular situation? For example, when you have unexpected guests or experience time pressure? | 0.822 | 16.335 *** | ||
FL12 Do you eat the total contents of a bag or container of crisps, candies or cookies in one go? | 0.797 | 15.805 *** | ||
Healthy Snack Styles | 0.826 | 0.894 | ||
FL13 Do you take along healthy snacks for yourself when you are on the go? (fruit, cherry-tomatoes, nuts?) | 0.844 | fixed | ||
FL14 Do you eat vegetables as snacks? | 0.891 | 22.717 *** | ||
FL15 Do you eat fruit as a snack? | 0.747 | 17.235 *** | ||
FL16 Do you have healthy snacks for yourself in stock? (nuts, carrots, cherry tomatoes, or mini cucumbers?) | 0.810 | 19.495 *** | ||
Social and Conscious Eating | 0.795 | 0.840 | ||
FL17 Do you find it important to eat at the dinner table if you are eating with others? | 0.901 | fixed | ||
FL18 Do you find it important to eat dinner at the same time if you are with others? | 0.916 | 23.520 *** | ||
FL19 Do you engage in any other activities while eating? (reading, working, or watching television?) | 0.614 | 13.552 *** | ||
Healthy Food Stockpiling | 0.858 | 0.929 | ||
FL20 Do you have 4 or more packages of crisps, pretzels or savory snacks in stock? | 0.835 | fixed | ||
FL21 Do you have 4 or more packages of candy, cookies or chocolate in stock? | 0.869 | 21.711 *** | ||
FL22 Do you have 4 or more bottles of sugar sweetened beverages or lemonade with sugar in stock? | 0.911 | 23.438 *** | ||
FL23 Do you have 4 or more cartons of fruit juice in stock? | 0.880 | 22.167 *** | ||
Labels and Budgeting | 0.820 | 0.880 | ||
FL24 Do you compare the calories, fat, sugar or salt content of different products? | 0.752 | fixed | ||
FL25 Do you check the nutritional labels of products for calories, fat, sugar or salt content? | 0.782 | 15.693 *** | ||
FL26 Do you purchase healthy foods, even if they are a bit more expensive? (vegetables, fruit, or whole grain products?) | 0.820 | 16.522 *** | ||
FL27 Do you purchase healthy food, even if you have limited money? (vegetables, fruit, or whole grain products?) | 0.853 | 17.242 *** | ||
Ecological Eating Behavior | 0.854 | 0.920 | ||
EEB1 Buy regional food | 0.857 | fixed | ||
EEB2 Buy organic food | 0.887 | 23.558 *** | ||
EEB3 Eat only seasonal fruits and vegetables | 0.738 | 17.372 *** | ||
EEB4 Eat less meat (maximum once or twice per week) | 0.804 | 19.843 *** | ||
EEB5 Avoid food products that were imported by airplane | 0.860 | 22.288 *** | ||
EEB6 Avoid food products with excessive packaging | 0.711 | 16.430 *** |
Construct | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | AVE | Mean ± SD a |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. Food Preparation Skills | 1 | 0.569 | 3.37 ± 1.07 | ||||||
2. Resilience and Resistance | 0.619 ** | 1 | 0.500 | 3.72 ± 0.98 | |||||
3. Healthy Snack Styles | 0.508 ** | 0.738 ** | 1 | 0.545 | 2.95 ± 1.18 | ||||
4. Social and Conscious Eating | 0.455 ** | 0.596 ** | 0.567 ** | 1 | 0.571 | 3.45 ± 1.10 | |||
5. Healthy Food Stockpiling | 0.357 ** | 0.561 ** | 0.764 ** | 0.536 ** | 1 | 0.602 | 2.73 ± 1.33 | ||
6. Label/Budgeting | 0.560 ** | 0.756 ** | 0.783 ** | 0.666 ** | 0.625 ** | 1 | 0.533 | 3.38 ± 1.07 | |
7. Ecological Eating Behavior | 0.364 ** | 0.612 ** | 0.722 ** | 0.410 ** | 0.623 ** | 0.606 ** | 1 | 0.500 | 3.27 ± 1020 |
Hypothesized Path (Stated as Alternative Hypothesis) | Standardized Path Coefficients | t-Value | Results |
---|---|---|---|
H1: Food Preparation Skills → Ecological Eating Behavior | −0.059 | −1.027 ns | Not supported |
H2: Label/Budgeting → Ecological Eating Behavior | 0.134 | 2.213 * | Supported |
H3: Healthy Snack Styles → Ecological Eating Behavior | 0.477 | 6.152 *** | Supported |
H4: Healthy Food Stockpiling → Ecological Eating Behavior | 0.198 | 2.645 ** | Supported |
H5: Resilience and Resistance → Ecological Eating Behavior | 0.232 | 3.913 *** | Supported |
H6: Social and Conscious Eating → Ecological Eating Behavior | −0.088 | −1.426 ns | Not supported |
Goodness-of-fit statistics | χ2(486) = 2180.775 (p < 0.001) | ||
TLI = 0.825 | |||
IFI = 0.840 | |||
CFI = 0.839 | |||
RMSEA = 0.094 |
Male (N = 165) | Female (N = 230) | Unconstrained Model Chi-Square (df = 972) | Constrained Model Chi-Square (df = 973) | ∆χ2 (df = 1) | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Standardized Coefficients | t-Value | Standardized Coefficients | t-Value | ||||
H7a: Food Preparation Skills → EEB | −0.103 | −1.368 ns | −0.082 | −1.014 ns | 2772.847 | 2772.875 | 0.028 |
H7b: Resilience and Resistance → EEB | 0.109 | 1.403 ns | 0.358 | 4.212 *** | 2772.847 | 2775.623 | 2.776 |
H7c: Healthy Snack Styles → EEB | 0.581 | 5.802 *** | 0.413 | 3.604 *** | 2772.847 | 2774.688 | 1.841 |
H7d: Social and Conscious Eating → EEB | −0.113 | −1.172 ns | −0.052 | −0.664 ns | 2772.847 | 2773.106 | 0.259 |
H7e: Healthy Food Stockpiling → EEB | 0.069 | 0.703 ns | 0.177 | 2.212 * | 2772.847 | 2773.066 | 0.219 |
H7f: Label/Budgeting → EEB | 0.237 | 2.606 ** | 0.139 | 1.240 ns | 2772.847 | 2773.322 | 0.475 |
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Lee, Y.; Kim, T.; Jung, H. Effects of University Students’ Perceived Food Literacy on Ecological Eating Behavior towards Sustainability. Sustainability 2022, 14, 5242. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14095242
Lee Y, Kim T, Jung H. Effects of University Students’ Perceived Food Literacy on Ecological Eating Behavior towards Sustainability. Sustainability. 2022; 14(9):5242. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14095242
Chicago/Turabian StyleLee, Yoojin, Taehee Kim, and Hyosun Jung. 2022. "Effects of University Students’ Perceived Food Literacy on Ecological Eating Behavior towards Sustainability" Sustainability 14, no. 9: 5242. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14095242