Associations between neighbourhood and household environmental variables and fruit consumption: exploration of mediation by individual cognitions and habit strength in the GLOBE study.
OBJECTIVE
The present study examined associations of several home and neighbourhood environmental variables with fruit consumption and explored whether these associations were mediated by variables derived from the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) and by habit strength.


METHODS
Data of the Dutch GLOBE study on household and neighbourhood environment, fruit intake and related factors were used, obtained by self-administered questionnaires (cross-sectional), face-to-face interviews and audits.


METHODS
The city of Eindhoven in the Netherlands


METHODS
Adults (n 333; mean age 58 years, 54% female).


RESULTS
Multiple mediation analyses were conducted using regression analyses to assess the association between environmental variables and fruit consumption, as well as mediation of these associations by TPB variables and by habit strength. Intention, perceived behaviour control, subjective norm and habit strength were associated with fruit intake. None of the neighbourhood environmental variables was directly or indirectly associated with fruit intake. The home environmental variable 'modelling behaviour by family members' was indirectly, but not directly, associated with fruit intake. Habit strength and perceived behaviour control explained most of the mediated effect (71.9%).


CONCLUSIONS
Modelling behaviour by family members was indirectly associated with fruit intake through habit strength and perceived behaviour control. None of the neighbourhood variables was directly or indirectly, through any of the proposed mediators, associated with adult fruit intake. These findings suggest that future interventions promoting fruit intake should address a combination of the home environment (especially modelling behaviour by family members), TPB variables and habit strength for fruit intake.
Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics and the EMGO Institute for Health and Care Research, VU University Medical Center, Van der Boechorststraat 7, 1081 BT Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Nannah I
NI
Tak
Saskia J
SJ
te Velde
Carlijn Bm
CB
Kamphuis
Kylie
K
Ball
David
D
Crawford
Johannes
J
Brug
Frank J
FJ
van Lenthe
D000368:Aged; D032763:Behavior Control; D003071:Cognition; D004032:Diet; D005190:Family; D005191:Family Characteristics; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D005638:Fruit; D006801:Humans; D033182:Intention; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009426:Netherlands; D010465:Perception; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D012944:Social Support