Zhang, Q, Hugh-Jones, S orcid.org/0000-0002-5307-1203 and O'Connor, DB orcid.org/0000-0003-4117-4093 (2023) Do British and Chinese adolescents snack for different reasons? A cross-country study using the Theory of Planned Behaviour and eating styles. Appetite, 187. 106591. ISSN 0195-6663
Abstract
Snacking is prevalent in adolescents and can have significant health impacts, but there is considerable individual and cross-country variation in determinants on adolescent snacking. The present study examined the role of eating styles (i.e. restrained eating, emotional eating, external eating, mindful eating) and the constructs of an extended Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) (i.e. attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control, habit strength) in predicting adolescent snacking, and the moderating effects of country. A survey was completed by adolescents aged 16–19 years from China (N = 182; mean age = 16.13, SD = 0.87) and England (N = 96; mean age = 17.04, SD = 0.74). Compared to British adolescents, Chinese adolescents showed higher restrained eating (p = .009), lower external eating (p = .004), less positive attitudes (p < .001) and subjective norms (p = .007) to, and less strong habit strength (p = .005) for unhealthy snacking. Mindful eating significantly predicted lower consumption of unhealthy snacks (p = .008) and beverages (p = .001), while restrained eating predicted higher consumption of fruit (p < .001) and vegetables (p < .001), regardless of country. Country showed significant moderating effects of TPB constructs on unhealthy beverages (p = .008) and fruit (p < .001) consumption, and effects on unhealthy snack (p = .023) and vegetable (p = .015) consumption approaching significance. Subjective norms predicted unhealthy snacking frequency regardless of country (p = .001). Habit strength predicted consumption of beverages (p < .001) and fruit (p < .001) only in English adolescents. Mindful eating may be a positive intervention approach to help reduce adolescent unhealthy snacking. TPB-based snacking interventions should carefully consider the country context. Acknowledging country-specific determinants of snacking are recommended.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2023 Elsevier Ltd. This is an author produced version of an article published in Appetite. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Keywords: | Adolescent snacking, Eating styles, Theory of planned behaviour (TPB), Habit strength, Cross-country |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Medicine and Health (Leeds) > School of Psychology (Leeds) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 04 Jul 2023 12:45 |
Last Modified: | 13 May 2024 00:13 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Elsevier |
Identification Number: | 10.1016/j.appet.2023.106591 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:201111 |