Degree Name

PhD (Doctor of Philosophy)

Program

Early Childhood Education

Date of Award

8-2024

Committee Chair or Co-Chairs

Amy Malkus

Committee Members

Carol M. Trivette, Michelle E. Johnson

Abstract

This study examines the influence of teaching digital resources of MyPlate on the nutrition knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) related to healthy eating habits among first and second-grade students. A pre-and post-assessment of this quasi-experimental research study measured the baseline KAP levels of 45 participants regarding healthy eating habits. Students were divided into three groups: digital MyPlate (n =16), pencil-and-paper (n =15), and control (n =14). Following the pre-assessment, an intervention was conducted involving teaching MyPlate and the five food groups. A post-assessment was then implemented to measure the change in KAP levels resulting from the intervention. In addition to the surveys, digital photography observation was used to assess the practice component of the intervention. Participants' lunch meals at the cafeteria were photographed before and after consumption to observe food variety and meal composition. An ANOVA was used to analyze the differences in post-assessment scores between the three groups: 2 intervention groups (the digital MyPlate group and the pencil-and-paper group) and the control group for knowledge, attitudes, and practice. For knowledge, F(2, 42) = 15.55, p < .001 indicating significant differences between groups for knowledge post-assessment. For attitudes, ANOVA revealed no significant differences, F(2, 42) = 1.619, p < .21. For practice, ANOVA revealed differences that approached but were not quite significant, F(2, 42) = 3.025, p < .0593. Tukey’s post-hoc tests showed a significant difference in the outcome between the digital MyPlate group and the control group (diff = 4.41, p-value of 0.00), and the pencil-and-paper group and the control group (diff = 3.68, p-value of 0.00) for knowledge. Both the digital MyPlate and pencil-and-paper group scored significantly higher than the control group on knowledge post-assessment. However, when pre-test and post-test measures of knowledge, attitudes, and practice were analyzed, there were no significant changes between pre- and post-test data for any of the groups (digital, pencil-and-paper, control). This study had several limitations such as a small sample size and intervention duration. This research can be used as a basis for future studies on MyPlate by expanding the intervention or investigating if this knowledge can lead to behavioral changes.

Document Type

Dissertation - unrestricted

Copyright

Copyright by the authors.

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