Culturally-Relevant Factors that Influence Healthy Eating among African American College Students

Obesity is a national epidemic in the US, disproportionately affecting African Americans, such that the obesity prevalence in African Americans (49.6%) surpassed the national prevalence (42.4%) in 2018. Those same disparities exist at the collegiate level, such that 27.4% of a sample of African Americans college students had obesity, surpassing the national prevalence of obesity (12.1%) in 2018. Diet, an important driver of obesity, is influenced by several psychological, social, and environmental factors. However, cultural factors influencing diet are understudied among African American college students. The overarching goal of the current study was to identify culturally-relevant factors that promote healthy eating among African American college students. Through a convergent mixed methods design, the results indicated that negative attitudes and low priority were significant barriers to healthy eating. Perceived importance predicted healthy eating engagement over and above barriers to engagement. Qualitative data demonstrated that culture serves as a socialization agent, shaping modeling, exposure, and perceptions of healthy eating behaviors. These culturally-relevant beliefs persist into emerging adulthood. These results serve as formative work to uncovering the specific role of culture in healthy eating behaviors among African American college students

Food Choice as a Signal of Racial Identity

Objectives: This study experimentally assessed food preference as one potentially important racial identity cue particularly for Black Americans, which in turn impacts interpersonal relations both between ethnicities/races (i.e., inter-group) and within ethnicity/race (i.e., intra-group). We hypothesized that preference for “Soul Food,” which is historically significant to Black Americans, as opposed to “Fresh Salad,” would be associated with stronger racial identity and induce more positive reactions among Black participants but more negative reactions among White participants. Methods: Undergraduate students (N = 365) viewed one of four online profiles that were ostensibly completed by a Black Student. Student gender (i.e., DeShawn vs. LaKeisha) and student food preference (Soul food vs. fresh salad) were manipulated experimentally within the online profiles. Results: Consistent with the prediction, preference for “Soul Food” was associated with stronger perceived racial identity, regardless of participant race. Additionally, Black participants responded more positively when “Soul Food” was preferred. In contrast, there was no evidence that White participants reacted differently to the Black students based on food preference. Conclusions: Food preference serves as one indicator of racial identity among Black Americans. Further implications are discussed.https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/gradposters/1066/thumbnail.jp

How do cultural norms shape healthy eating in African Americans? The role of cultural congruence and mindsets of health in healthy eating intentions among African American college students

Targeting dietary behaviors is a predominant strategy to reduce rates of obesity among African Americans, across the lifespan. Notably, dietary behaviors are shaped by social, cultural and environmental affordances. This study integrated Theory of planned behavior (TPB), identity-based motivation, and mindset theory to unearth cultural mechanisms that inform motivations to eat healthy among African American college students. This project employed a cross-sectional (Study 1) and experimental design (Study 2) to contextualize the antecedents of intentions to eat healthy among African American college students. Recruitment occurred via university-wide digital channels. Eligible participants: were 18+ years; Black/African American; were undergraduate students; and did not present eating disorder symptomology. Study participation was mutually exclusive. Measures assessed behavioral antecedents of TPB (e.g., attitudes), cultural (in)congruence, racial identity, mindsets of health, and sociodemographic variables. On average, Study 1 participants (N = 81) were 20 years of age, female, and first year students. There were no direct effects of cultural (in)congruence on healthy eating intentions. However, racial identity was a significant moderator, such that individuals with a stronger nationalist ideology reported more healthy eating intentions when healthy eating was viewed as culturally incongruent (β = 9.96, SE = 3.16, p = .002). Study 2 (N = 52) demographics mirrored those of Study 1. Results indicated a main effect of growth mindset on healthy eating intentions (β = .32, p = .02). Future studies should consider how these constructs 1) develop across the lifespan, 2) apply to other health behaviors, and 3) interact with environmental factors

Space Planning for Online Community

Several years of consulting with online community hosts and managers have highlighted a variety of issues that recur across many online community development efforts. We summarize those issues in eight points that have functioned as useful guidelines to working with online communities, particularly within a corporate context. These recommendations focus on the location and purpose of the community, the monitoring of social activity within the space, the provision of feedback to participants and the organization and maintenance of the space. While this collection is particularly focused on issues relevant to community organizers closely involved in starting, maintaining or growing online communities, its principles are generally applicable for analyzing and understanding the dynamics within a variety of communities

You are who you talk to: Detecting roles in Usenet newsgroups

Understanding the social roles of the members a group can help to understand the social context of the group. We present a method of applying social network analysis to support the task of characterizing authors in Usenet newsgroups. We compute and visualize networks created by patterns of replies for each author in selected newsgroups and find that second-degree ego-centric networks give us clear distinctions between different types of authors and newsgroups. Results show that newsgroups vary in terms of the populations of participants and the roles that they play. Newsgroups can be characterized by populations that include question and answer newsgroups, conversational newsgroups, social support newsgroups, and flame newsgroups. This approach has applications for both researchers seeking to characterize different types of social cyberspaces as well as participants seeking to distinguish interaction partners and content authors. 1

Effect of Unweighting using the Lightspeed Lift on Energy Expenditure During Treadmill Walking and Jogging

Support and unweighting systems, such as AlterG, are often used in rehabilitation and alternative training, which provide an exercise effect that can minimize fitness- or performance-related loss. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to explore the effect of using a treadmill bungee support system (Lightspeed lift) on oxygen consumption (energy expenditure), heart rate, and rating of perceived exertion. METHODS: Twenty-four participants (age (yrs)=22.1±2.9, ht (cm)=169.8±10.1, wt (kg)=76.6±13) completed two trials of walking (3mph) and two trials of jogging (5 mph) with and without support. Data was analyzed with IBM SPSS v27 (Chicago IL). Repeated Measures ANOVA were used to determine significant differences between sessions for each condition. Alpha was set to .05 for all tests. RESULTS: While there was no significant difference in VO2 while walking with (13.8±2.5 ml/kg/min) and without (13.0±1.4 ml/kg/min) the supports system, p=.381, there was a significant difference in VO2 while jogging with (26.6±4.0 ml/kg/min) and without it (29.2±2.5 ml/kg/min), p=.014.There was no significant difference in HR while walking with (106.9±15.5 b/min) and without (108.3±14.4 b/min) the support system, p=1.0, nor while jogging with (154.7±21.4) and without (160.0±20.2 b/min) it, p=.129. Participants perceived the support system provided 60.8±26.2% help while walking and 66.7±26.2% while jogging, however, there was no significant difference in RPE (Borg’s 6-20 scale) with (8.4±2.2) and without (8.3±1.9) support while walking, p=.913, nor with (12.1±2.5) and without (11.5±2.0) support while jogging, p=.130. Body weight was significantly lower with (68.4±13.4 kg) the support system prior to walking compared to without it (76.5±13.7 kg), p=.001, whereas body weight significantly increased with the support system at the conclusion of the 5-min walk (69.9±13.1 kg), p=.001. These same trends in body weight were evident before jogging with (68.8±13.2 kg) and without (76.5±13.6 kg ) the support system, p=.001, and after the 5-min jog with (70.1±13.1 kg) compared to without it prior to the jog, p=.001. CONCLUSION: While this system provides unloading, energy expenditure changes very little with the manufacturer\u27s recommended unweighting

You Are Who You Talk To:

Understanding the social roles of the members a group can help to understand the social context of the group. We present a method of applying social network analysis to support the task of characterizing authors in Usenet newsgroups. We compute and visualize networks created by patterns of replies for each author in selected newsgroups and find that second-degree ego-centric networks give us clear distinctions between different types of authors and newsgroups