An Ecological Approach to Understanding
Factors that Influence Dietary Practices in African-American Children
and Their Caregivers
Angela Odoms-Young PhD, Northern
Illinois University, Shannon Zenk, PhD, University of Illinois at
Chicago, Robin Jarrett, PhD, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Background
African-Americans are disproportionately at risk for childhood
overweight as compared to
their Caucasian counterparts. Effective intervention and treatment
strategies to address the needs of this
population have been limited. Understanding factors that contribute
to weight-related behaviors in
African-American families is essential for developing successful approaches
to address racial/ethnic
disparities in childhood overweight, as well as the increasing national
prevalence of obesity overall.
Project design and subject selection
This study uses a mixed-method
approach to identify multiple factors (i.e. individual, interpersonal,
community/neighborhood) that influence dietary practices of
African-American families residing in a low-income community in the
Chicago area. The study takes an
asset-based (or strength-based) vs. deficit approach to understanding
the lives of families with limited
resources. A series of semi-structured, in-depth individual interviews
will be conducted with 12 African-
American women with children ages 2-5, recruited from community-based
organizations and agencies
within the Englewood neighborhood. Englewood was targeted for the study:
because 1) evidence suggests
that communities with high rates of poverty (>40%) face significant
barriers to weight management and
obesity prevention and 2) investigators are currently involved in a
community partnership focused on
developing programs to address health concerns of families living in
this area.
Methods for data collection and analysis
Individual interviews
will specifically focus on issues believed
to influence usual food consumption patterns including daily activities,
social/family networks and social
support, parenting practices, household budgeting and food shopping,
neighborhood perceptions, and
child/caregiver health and nutrition beliefs. The open-ended nature
of the interviews allows participants to
describe issues from their own perspective vs. being limited by the
investigators' conceptualization of the
issues. To learn more about food access and availability, a neighborhood
ethnography and
quantitative/qualitative assessment of the food environment will also
be conducted. The neighborhood
food assessment will focus on availability and quality of healthy/unhealthy
food products and
characteristics of local store/restaurant environments. Grounded theory
(Glaser and Strauss, 1967; Strauss
and Corbin, 1990) will be the key methodological strategy for analyzing
the interview and observational
data. An inductive methodology, grounded theory facilitates the discovery
of meanings, social processes,
and social interactions as they emerge from the data. Qualitative data
analysis also will rely on Miles and
Huberman’s Qualitative Data Analysis (1984), which provides strategies
for managing large quantities of
data through visual displays and aides in data reduction. The Statistical
Package for the Social Sciences
(SPSS) and ArcView 3.3 will be used to analyze retail food establishment
data.
Anticipated results
It is anticipated that results will reveal
factors that encourage both positive and
negative influences on dietary behaviors. Expected results will provide
insights into the role of individual
characteristics, family, institutions and environment in shaping children’s
food behaviors and strategies
used by low-income women to obtain food for their families in the face
of limited resources and
competing priorities.
Significance of this work
It is anticipated
that study findings will help expand knowledge related to
developing culturally appropriate programs for African-American families
to reduce barriers to weight
management and obesity prevention. Research findings will be disseminated
to local and national
community-based and policy organizations. Reports will also be provided
to participating families and
agencies.
Acknowledgments and contact info
This project is supported
by a seed grant from the Consortium to
Lower Obesity in Chicago Children (CLOCC). We also would like to
acknowledge assistance from
students from the UIC-HCOP program, W/E HELP partnership, and Cook-County
Bureau of Health
Services ACHN-Woodlawn and Englewood Health Centers for providing
feedback or assisting with
preliminary data collection.
For more information contact the Lead Investigator: Angela M. Odoms-Young,
Northern Illinois University, School of Allied Health, Public Health
and Health Education, Dekalb, IL 60115. Phone: (815) 753-6324, Email:
aodoms@niu.edu.
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