Validation of a food preparation involvement questionnaire and its use to identify factors affecting fruit and vegetable intake in college-age adults

Abstract

College-age adults are not consuming adequate amounts of fruits and vegetables. One factor that has emerged as influential in fruit and vegetable consumption is cooking skills and food preparation involvement although an assessment tool has not been validated. A food preparation involvement questionnaire was developed and validated using a 4-stage method that included content and face validity, and reliability and feasibility testing. The validated questionnaire was then used to assess relationships between factors involved in the food preparation process and fruit and vegetable consumption in college students (n=214). Chi-squared analyses revealed a significant relationship between cooking knowledge and food preparation behavior and consumption of dark-green leafy vegetables, and between resource availability and consumption of red and orange vegetables (p<0.05). This questionnaire provides a standardized tool to measure food preparation involvement in college-age adults that identified pertinent factors affecting their fruit and vegetable consumption.