title: Tailoring a fruit and vegetable intervention on ethnic identity: results of a randomized study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Many targeted interventions have been developed and tested with African Americans (AA); however, AAs are a highly heterogeneous group. One characteristic that varies across AAs is Ethnic Identity (EI). Little research has been conducted on how to incorporate EI into the design of health messages and programs.
  
  
  METHODS
  We tested whether tailoring a print-based fruit and vegetable (F & V) intervention on EI would enhance program impact. AA adults were recruited from two integrated healthcare delivery systems and then randomized to receive three newsletters focused on F & V behavior change over three months. One set of newsletters was tailored only on demographic and social cognitive variables (control condition), whereas the other (experimental condition) was additionally tailored on EI.
  
  
  METHODS
  The primary outcome for the study was F & V intake, assessed at baseline and three months later using the composite of two brief self-report frequency measures.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 560 eligible participants were enrolled, of which 468 provided complete 3-month follow-up data. The experimental group increased their daily mean F & V intake by 1.1 servings compared to .8 servings in the control group (p = .13). Afrocentric experimental group participants showed a 1.4 increase in F & V servings per day compared to a .43 servings per day increase among Afrocentric controls (p < .05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although the overall between-group effects were not significant, tailoring dietary messages on ethnic identity may improve intervention impact for some AA subgroups.
authors: University of Michigan.
authors: Ken
authors: K
authors: Resnicow
authors: Environmental Health Sciences, University of Michigan.
authors: Rachel
authors: R
authors: Davis
authors: Biostatistics, University of Michigan.
authors: Nanhua
authors: N
authors: Zhang
authors: University of Michigan.
authors: Victor
authors: V
authors: Strecher
authors: Kaiser Permanente of Georgia, Center for Health Research/Southeast.
authors: Dennis
authors: 0000-0002-0685-0618
authors: D
authors: Tolsma
authors: Kaiser Permanente of Georgia, Center for Health Research/Southeast.
authors: Josephine
authors: J
authors: Calvi
authors: Henry Ford Hospital.
authors: Gwen
authors: G
authors: Alexander
authors: Group Health, Center for Health Studies.
authors: Julia P
authors: JP
authors: Anderson
authors: Group Health, Center for Health Studies.
authors: Cheryl
authors: C
authors: Wiese
authors: Department of Psychology, City University of New York.
authors: William E
authors: WE
authors: Cross
mesh_terms: D000069:Acculturation; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000208:ethnology*; D000368:Aged; D055812:Community-Based Participatory Research; D054521:Cultural Competency; D018864:Cultural Diversity; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000208:ethnology*; D005260:Female; D005638:Fruit; D006266:Health Education / Q000941:ethics; D006279:Health Maintenance Organizations; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009749:Nutrition Surveys; D018579:Patient Selection; D012933:Social Identification; D014675:Vegetables; D055815:Young Adult