Theses and Dissertations
This collection includes both ASU Theses and Dissertations, submitted by graduate students, and the Barrett, Honors College theses submitted by undergraduate students.
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- All Subjects: Health Sciences
- Creators: Wharton, Christopher
Description
Tools designed to help match people with behaviors they identify as likely to lead to a successful behavioral outcome remain under-researched. This study assessed the effect of a participant-driven behavior-matching intervention on 1) the adoption of a new behavior related to fruit and vegetable (F&V) consumption, 2) study attrition, and 3) changes in F&V consumption. In this two-arm randomized controlled trial, 64 adults who did not meet standard F&V recommendations were allocated to an intervention (n=33) or control group (n=31). Participants in the intervention group ranked 20 F&V-related behaviors according to their perceived likelihood of engagement in the behavior and their perception of the behavior’s efficacy in increasing F&V consumption. Participants in the intervention group were subsequently shown the list of 20 behaviors in order of their provided rankings, with the highest-ranked behaviors at the top, and were asked to choose a behavior they would like to perform daily for 4 weeks. The control group chose from a random-order list of the same 20 behaviors to adopt daily for 4 weeks. During the study period, text messages were sent to all participants 90 minutes before their reported bedtime to collect Yes/No data reflecting successful behavior engagement each day. The binary repeated-measures data collected from the text messages was analyzed using mixed-effects logistic regression, differences in attrition were assessed using log-rank analysis, and change scores in F&V consumption were compared between the two groups using the Man-Whitney U test. P<0.05 indicated significance. The rate of successful behavior adoption did not differ significantly between the two groups (b=0.09, 95%CI= -0.81, 0.98, p=0.85). The log rank test results indicated that there was no significant difference in attrition between the two groups (χ2=2.68, df=1, p=0.10). F&V consumption increased significantly over the 4 weeks in the total sample (Z=-5.86, p<0.001), but no differences in F&V change scores were identified between the control and intervention groups (Z=-0.21, p=0.84). The behavior-matching tool assessed in this study did not significantly improve behavior adoption, study attrition, or F&V intake over 4 weeks.
ContributorsCosgrove, Kelly Sarah (Author) / Wharton, Christopher (Thesis advisor) / Adams, Marc (Committee member) / DesRoches, Tyler (Committee member) / Grebitus, Carola (Committee member) / Johnston, Carol (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2023
Description
A large amount of research associates the lack of fruit and vegetable consumption and the intake of animal-based foods with poor health outcomes. Making shifts towards a plant-focused diet could benefit the health of individuals. Individuals who show the highest long-term adherence to the avoidance of animal-based foods are those who value animal welfare. PURPOSE: The primary purpose of this study is to explore the validity of a novel animal food frequency questionnaire (AFFQ) in relation to dietary animal food intake using 3-day dietary food logs and measuring potential renal acid load (PRAL). PRAL is the amount of acid that is produced by the body after digesting food. Fruits and vegetables produce a lower acid load, which is reflective of positive health outcomes. A secondary aim of this study is to explore the relation between AFFQ scores and measures of empathy. METHODS: Participants complete a 10-minute survey including the AFFQ and the BES-A. The Basic Scale of Empathy for adults will be viewed based on the 2 factor and 3 factor analysis assessing: Affective empathy, Cognitive empathy, Emotional contagion, and Emotional Disconnection. The AFFQ will be scored and correlated with the 3-day food log and PRAL to explore validity of the new AFFQ scale. Secondarily, the AFFQ will be scored and correlated with the BES-A to explore an association. RESULTS: The null hypotheses H01 and H02 were rejected. H01 showed that AFFQ correlates significantly with percentage of dietary protein coming from animal- based products (r=.676, p=.016). H02 showed AFFQ has a significant correlation to PRAL (r=.831, p<.001). PRAL and the percentage of protein in the diet coming from animal-based products have a significant correlation (r=.725, p=.008). The null hypothesis H03 was accepted with AFFQ and BES-A 2 factor and 3 factor’s correlations showing (r= -.412, p=.183) and (r= -.307, p=.332). CONCLUSION: The AFFQ was able to reflect differences in frequency of animal-based food intake among the convenience sample. The AFFQ and individuals’ food choices were not related to their empathy levels.
ContributorsAlpine, Evajean May (Author) / Wharton, Christopher (Thesis advisor) / Lehmann, Jessica (Committee member) / Johnston, Carol (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2021