Abstract
Objective
To examine the validity and reliability of a questionnaire administered with an audience
response system (ARS).
Design
Cross-sectional study.
Setting
Two New York City public elementary schools.
Participants
Fourth- and fifth-grade students.
Main Outcome Measures
A Food, Health, and Choices questionnaire (FHC-Q) assessed energy balance-related
behaviors (EBRBs) including intake of fruits and vegetables, sugar-sweetened beverages,
processed packaged snacks, and fast food; physical activity; recreational screen time;
and associated psychosocial determinants (≥ 3 questions/outcome scale). Previously
validated reference instruments were used for relative validation. The ARS format
was compared with a paper-and-pencil format. All measures were administered in a classroom
setting.
Analysis
Pearson correlation coefficients between the reference instruments and the FHC-Q were
calculated. Internal consistency reliabilities were evaluated with Cronbach α. Spearman
rank correlation, intra-class correlation, and percent agreement were used for test-retest
reliability between paper-and-pencil and ARS, and between 2 ARS FHC-Q administrations.
Results
Correlations for EBRBs with reference instruments ranged from 0.38 to 0.61 (P < .01). Cronbach α ranged from .77 to .92 for EBRBs and .74 to .90 for psychosocial
determinants. Test-retest reliability correlations ranged from 0.36 to 0.87 (P < .001). Agreement for knowledge questions ranged from 69.8% to 84.8%.
Conclusions and Implications
The ARS FHC-Q has acceptable validity and reliability for collecting data on EBRBs
and associated psychosocial determinants for upper-elementary students.
Key Words
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: April 30, 2016
Accepted:
March 29,
2016
Footnotes
Conflict of Interest Disclosure: The authors' conflict of interest disclosures can be found online with this article on www.jneb.org.
Identification
Copyright
©2016 Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior. Published by Elsevier, Inc. All rights reserved.
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- Validity and Reliability of Behavior and Theory-Based Psychosocial Determinants Measures, Using Audience Response System Technology in Urban Upper-Elementary Schoolchildren: Limitations of Pearson's r and Percent AgreementJournal of Nutrition Education and BehaviorVol. 48Issue 10
- PreviewWe were interested to read the article by Gray and colleagues,1 published in the Journal in July–August, 2016. The authors aimed to examine the validity and reliability of the Food, Health, and Choices questionnaire (FHC-Q) administered with an audience response system. They reported that the FHC-Q is a valid and reliable tool for assessing energy balance–related behaviors.1
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