title: Measurement of self-efficacy for diet-related behaviors among elementary school children.
abstract: Health promotion interventions intended to improve dietary behavior frequently incorporate self-efficacy as a construct to enhance behavior change. This paper presents results from a study to establish psychometric properties of a scale to measure children's self-efficacy for selecting healthful food. As part of a series of pilot studies to develop instrumentation for the Child and Adolescent Trial for Cardiovascular Health (CATCH), data were collected on third and fourth grade students (n = 1,127). Data analyses were conducted to estimate internal consistency, test-retest reliability, factorial validity, and criterion related validity. Results revealed acceptable estimates of internal consistency for the dietary self-efficacy scale (coefficient alpha = .84). Self-efficacy was strong associated with the children's usual food choices, accounting for about 34% of variance (Multiple R = .58). Findings support using such an instrument for evaluating intervention programs addressing nutrition behavior and for studies to determine the association of self-efficacy to dietary behavior or related constructs.
authors.affiliation: Center for Health Promotion Research and Development, University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston 77225, USA.
authors.forename: G S
authors.initials: GS
authors.lastname: Parcel
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Edmundson
authors.forename: C L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Perry
authors.forename: H A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Feldman
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: O'Hara-Tompkins
authors.forename: P R
authors.initials: PR
authors.lastname: Nader
authors.forename: C C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.forename: E J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Stone
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D003710:Demography; D004041:Dietary Fats / Q000008:administration & dosage; D004522:Educational Status; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation; D011594:Psychometrics; D012044:Regression Analysis; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012737:Sex Factors; D012982:Sodium, Dietary / Q000008:administration & dosage; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States
chemical_list: D004041:Dietary Fats; D012982:Sodium, Dietary