Investigating obesity risk-reduction behaviours and psychosocial factors in Chinese Americans

AIM: The purpose of this research was to examine the attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors related to obesity risk reduction in Chinese Americans. METHODS: A questionnaire was administered to a convenience sample of 300 US-born and foreign-born Chinese Americans residing in the New York metropolitan area, ranging from 18 to 40 years of age. Obesity risk reduction behaviors and psychosocial variables derived from the Theory of Planned Behaviour and Health Belief Model were measured. Acculturation was assessed using a modified Suinn-Lew Asian Self-Identity Acculturation Scale. Frequency distributions were delineated and stepwise regression analyses were analyzed for different acculturation groups. RESULTS: 65% of the respondents were female and the mean age of the sample was 26 years. Respondents indicated the most commonly practiced behavior to be eating home-cooked meals instead of restaurant-prepared foods. Perceived barriers to adopting obesity risk-reduction behaviors included the convenience of consuming fast foods, cost, lack of time to prepare home-cooked meals, and the physical environment of unhealthy foods. In predicting intention to perform obesity risk-reduction behaviors, the attitude was significant for \u27Western-identified\u27 individuals. In \u27Asian-identified\u27 individuals, perceived behavioral control, self-efficacy and perceived benefits were salient. CONCLUSIONS: Nutrition educators working with Chinese Americans need to address self-efficacy in preparing plant-based, home-cooked meals and making healthy choices at fast-food restaurants with portion control. Concrete and perceived barriers such as lack of time and convenience need to be addressed in nutrition education interventions. Educators need to identify new channels and media outlets to disseminate practical, easy-to-implement behaviors for obesity risk reduction that are socially acceptable

Examination of Obesity Risk-Reduction Behaviors in Chinese Americans

The purpose of this survey research was to examine the psychosocial characteristics of obesity risk-reduction behaviors in Chinese Americans. Obesity risk-reduction behaviors and psychosocial variables derived from the Theory of Planned Behavior and the Health Belief Model were measured. A questionnaire was administered to a convenience sample of 300 young adult Chinese Americans residing in the New York metropolitan area. Results suggest that when communicating messages to low adopters of health behaviors, promoting positive attitudes and social influences for healthful eating should be emphasized. High behavior adopters may benefit from strategies to maintain self-efficacy to enact health-related behaviors conducive to obesity prevention

Exploratory Investigation of Obesity Risk and Prevention in Chinese Americans

Objective: To examine the beliefs and attitudes related to obesity risk and its prevention in Chinese Americans via in-depth, qualitative interviews using the guiding tenets of Health Belief Model, Theory of Planned Behavior, and social ecological models. Design: A qualitative study using tenets of the Health Belief Model, the Theory of Planned Behavior, and social ecological models. Setting: The New York City metropolitan area. Participants: Forty young Chinese American adults (24 females; 16 males) were interviewed. Main Outcome Measures: Obesity risk and prevention. Analysis: Common themes were identified, coded, and compared using NVivo computer software. Results: Poor dietary habits and sedentary lifestyles were seen as major weight gain contributors. Obesity was seen predominately as a non-Asian phenomenon, although 60% of the participants felt susceptible to obesity. Physical and social environmental factors were the overriding themes generated as to the causes of weight gain among young adult Chinese Americans. Physical factors included the powerful effect of media-generated advertisements and a plethora of inexpensive fast and convenience foods emphasizing large portion sizes of low nutrient density. The social environment encourages the consumption of large quantities of these foods. Traditional Chinese cuisine was seen as providing more healthful alternatives, but increasing acculturation to American lifestyle results in less traditional food consumption. Some traditional Chinese beliefs regarding the desirability of a slightly heavy physique can encourage overeating. Conclusion and Implications: Nutrition educators need to be public policy advocates for environments providing tasty, low cost, healthful foods. Young adult Chinese Americans seek knowledge and skills for making convenient healthful food selections in the midst of a culture that advocates and provides an abundance of unhealthful choices

Usefulness of Psychosocial Theory Variables in Explaining Fat-Related Dietary Behavior in Chinese Americans: Association With Degree of Acculturation

Objective: To determine the usefulness of variables from psychosocial models of health behavior in explaining fat-related dietary behavior among a sample of Chinese Americans. Design: A survey questionnaire was administered to a convenience sample of Chinese Americans and analyzed for descriptive statistics and relationships among variables. Subjects/Settings: Participants were 600 healthy individuals, ranging from 25 to 70 years of age, living in New York City. Variables Measured: Demographic factors, degree of acculturation, food preferences, and 13 social psychological scales derived from the Theory of Planned Behavior, the Healthy Belief Model, and Social Cognitive Theory. Dependent measures assessed were intention to reduce dietary fat and behaviors related to the selection of reduced-fat diets. Statistical Analyses: Descriptive statistics, Pearsons\u27 correlation coefficients, t-tests, one-way analyses of variance, and multiple regression analyses were used. Results: Attitude, overall health concern, and self-efficacy accounted for 58% of the variance in behavioral intention for the entire sample. Attitude, perceived barriers, and self-efficacy accounted for 19% of the variance in the prediction of dietary fat reduction behaviors. In general, a gradient was seen in the increased predictiveness of each regression model by degree of acculturation of the immigrants to American culture: predictiveness (R2) for behavior ranged from 15% for the least to 34% for the most acculturated. Acculturation was significantly related to declines in the influence of habit and of social norms.These effects were not seen by length of residency. Implications: Nutrition educators should assess the degree of acculturation of groups with whom they work and recognize that the degree of acculturation impacts the relative importance of various psychosocial variables in fat reduction behaviors

Nutrition Counseling and Education Skill Development

Third edition.https://digitalcommons.montclair.edu/all_books/1087/thumbnail.jp

Generational Differences in Psychosocial Predictors of Fat-Related Dietary Behavior in Chinese Americans

The purpose of this study was to determine the usefulness of variables from psychosocial models of health behavior in explaining fat-related dietary behaviors among a sample of first and second generation Chinese Americans living in New York City. A survey questionnaire was administered to a convenience sample of 743 Chinese Americans, ranging in age from 21 to 73. The questionnaire measured demographic factors, degree of acculturation, and psychosocial scales derived from the Theory of Planned Behavior and the Health Belief Model. The dependent measures assessed were behaviors related to the selection of reduced-fat diets. Multiple regression analyses were conducted to determine the association of the psychosocial factors with the dependent outcomes. For first generation Chinese, attitude, perceived barriers, and self-efficacy contributed to 19% of the variance of behaviors related to fat reduction. In the second generation sample, attitude, perceived barriers, and overall health concern accounted for 39% of the variance in the prediction of dietary fat reduction behaviors. Predictability of behavioral intention using these psychosocial factors ranged from 49% to 58%. Nutrition educators need to acknowledge the salience of specific psychosocial factors highlighted in each generation of Chinese Americans

Living Environment Considerations on Obesity Prevention Behaviors and Self-Efficacy among Chinese Americans

The aim of this study is to ascertain if the living environment (type of residential neighborhood and number of household members) will elucidate differences in obesity risk reduction behaviors and self-efficacy in Chinese Americans. A cross-sectional survey design was used to recruit participants from Los Angeles County and New York City metropolitan areas. A total of 650 adults were recruited from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds. Descriptive statistics were measured for 19 behaviors reflecting food intake and portion size control and items measuring self-efficacy and attitudes. T-tests were applied for the two categories of living environment. The mean age of the sample was 36.3 years. The ‘high income’ neighborhood group indicated a greater frequency of behaviors, including choosing steamed over fried foods (p \u3c 0.01) and using small amounts of oil (p \u3c 0.05). In general, this group exhibited more favorable attitudes and stronger self-efficacy to per- form health behaviors. Multiple regression analyses point to the impact of self-efficacy in predicting behaviors. Nutrition professionals must assess client’s living environments in the adoption of obesity prevention behaviors and the fostering of behavioral confidence

Dietary Acculturation of Obesity Risk Reduction Behaviors in Chinese Americans

Increasing rates of obesity among successive generations occur among Chinese Americans. This cross-sectional survey measured obesity risk reduction behaviors and degree of acculturation among a convenience sample of 203 Chinese Americans living in Los Angeles, California. Asian-identified participants were most likely to follow traditional healthful Chinese food patterns, and Western-identified individuals were more apt to engage in leisure physical activity. Individuals categorized as bicultural were prone to use limited amounts of fats or oils when preparing foods. Health professionals and educators working with Chinese Americans need to consider the impact of acculturation affecting the adoption of obesity prevention behaviors

Psychosocial Variables and Obesity-Risk-Reduction Behaviors in Chinese Americans

The objective of this study was to utilize social-psychological theories to explain obesity-risk-reduction behaviors. A questionnaire based on the health belief model and theory of planned behavior was administered to a convenience sample of 300 Chinese Americans in the New York metropolitan area. Psychosocial variables accounted for 40.4% of the variance of obesity-risk-reduction behaviors. Self-efficacy, behavioral intention, and perceived benefits emerged as most influential variables. Forty-eight percent of the variance of behavioral intention was accounted with self-efficacy predominating. Health professionals targeting Chinese Americans need to address self-efficacy, behavioral intention, and perceived benefits of adopting obesity-risk-reduction behaviors

Factors Influencing the Eating Practices of Hospital Nurses During Their Shifts

The purpose of this study was to identify factors influencing hospital nurses’ dietary practices during their shifts. Semistructured interviews grounded in the Social Ecological Model focused on individual, interpersonal, organizational, and public policy factors affecting intake. Responses from 20 female nurses were qualitatively coded and categorized based on common themes. Four major themes emerged: occupational characteristics, hesitation to take breaks, influence of unhealthy food, and organizational and industry policies. Of note, nurses’ perceived inability to take breaks was due to patient load, unpredictability of patient needs, reluctance to burden other nurses, a tendency to prioritize patient care over self-care, and the repercussions of working longer hours to complete work. Other influential factors included the presence of unhealthy food options, regulations restricting nurses’ ability to eat and drink in the workplace, and the need for more staff. Multilevel interventions are necessary to ensure nurses take appropriate meal breaks and maintain satisfactory dietary habits