title: Method of assessing parent-child grocery store purchasing interactions using a micro-camcorder.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to assess the validity of using participant worn micro-camcorders (PWMC) to collect data on parent-child food and beverage purchasing interactions in the grocery store. Parent-child dyads (n = 32) were met at their usual grocery store and shopping time. Parents were mostly Caucasian (n = 27, 84.4%), mothers (n = 30, 93.8%). Children were 2-6 years old with 15 girls and 17 boys. A micro-camcorder was affixed to a baseball style hat worn by the child. The dyad proceeded to shop while being shadowed by an in-person observer. Video/audio data were coded for behavioral and environmental variables. The PWMC method was compared to in-person observation to assess sensitivity and relative validity for measuring parent-child interactions, and compared to receipt data to assess criterion validity for evaluating purchasing decisions. Inter-rater reliability for coding video/audio data collected using the PWMC method was also assessed. The PWMC method proved to be more sensitive than in-person observation revealing on average 1.4 (p < 0.01) more parent-child food and beverage purchasing interactions per shopping trip. Inter-rater reliability for coding PWMC data showed moderate to almost perfect agreement (Cohen's kappa = 0.461-0.937). The PWMC method was significantly correlated with in-person observation for measuring occurrences of parent-child food purchasing interactions (rho = 0.911, p < 0.01) and characteristics of those interactions (rho = 0.345-0.850, p < 0.01). Additionally, there was substantial agreement between the PWMC method and receipt data for measuring purchasing decisions (Cohen's kappa = 0.787). The PWMC method proved to be well suited to assess parent-child food and beverage purchasing interactions in the grocery store.
authors.affiliation: The University of Texas at Austin, 200 W. 24th Street, Gearing Hall, Austin, TX 78712, USA. Electronic address: ericcalloway@utexas.edu.
authors.forename: Eric E
authors.initials: EE
authors.lastname: Calloway
authors.affiliation: Third Coast R&D, Inc., 2728 Ave Q, Galveston, TX 77550, USA.
authors.forename: Cindy
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Roberts-Gray
authors.affiliation: The University of Texas Health Science Center, School of Public Health, Austin Regional Campus, Michael and Susan Dell Center, 1616 Guadalupe Street, Suite 6.334, Austin, TX 78701, USA.
authors.forename: Nalini
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ranjit
authors.affiliation: The University of Texas at Austin, 200 W. 24th Street, Gearing Hall, Austin, TX 78712, USA.
authors.forename: Sara J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Sweitzer
authors.affiliation: The University of Texas at Austin, 200 W. 24th Street, Gearing Hall, Austin, TX 78712, USA.
authors.forename: Katie A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: McInnis
authors.affiliation: The University of Texas at Austin, 200 W. 24th Street, Gearing Hall, Austin, TX 78712, USA.
authors.forename: Maria J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Romo-Palafox
authors.affiliation: The University of Texas at Austin, 200 W. 24th Street, Gearing Hall, Austin, TX 78712, USA.
authors.forename: Margaret E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Briley
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002755:Choice Behavior; D003657:Decision Making; D004032:Diet; D005260:Female; D005518:Food Preferences; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D019370:Observation / Q000379:methods; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D010290:Parents; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D014743:Videotape Recording / Q000379:methods*
keywords: Data collection; Family; Food purchasing; Micro-camcorder