Parent-reported social support for child's fruit and vegetable intake: validity of measures.
OBJECTIVE
To develop and validate measures of parental social support to increase their child's fruit and vegetable (FV) consumption.


METHODS
Cross-sectional study design.


METHODS
School and home.


METHODS
Two hundred three parents with at least 1 elementary school-aged child.


METHODS
Parents completed a questionnaire that included instrumental social support scale (ISSPS), emotional social support scale (ESSPS), household FV availability and accessibility index, and demographics.


METHODS
Exploratory factor analysis with promax rotation was conducted to obtain the psychometric properties of ISSPS and ESSPS. Internal consistency and test-retest reliabilities were also assessed.


RESULTS
Factor analysis indicated a 4-factor model for ESSPS: positive encouragement, negative role modeling, discouragement, and an item cluster called reinforcement. Psychometric properties indicated that ISSPS performed best as independent single scales with α = .87. Internal consistency reliabilities were acceptable, and test-retest reliabilities ranged from low to acceptable. Correlations between scales, subscales, and item clusters were significant (P < .05). In addition, ISSPS and the positive encouragement subscale were significantly correlated with household FV availability.


CONCLUSIONS
The ISSPS and ESSPS subscales demonstrated good internal consistency reliability and are suitable for impact assessment of an intervention designed to target parents to help their children eat more fruit and vegetables.
United States Department of Agriculture/Agricultural Research Service (USDA/ARS) Children's Nutrition Research Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA. jmdave@bcm.edu
Jayna M
JM
Dave
Alexandra E
AE
Evans
Marge D
MD
Condrasky
Joel E
JE
Williams
D002648:Child; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D005638:Fruit; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D011594:Psychometrics; D012944:Social Support; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires / Q000592:standards*; D014675:Vegetables