Construct validity of Brazilian cooking skills and healthy eating questionnaire by the known-groups method
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to describe the results of the construct validity by the known-groups method of a Brazilian cooking skills and healthy-eating questionnaire.
Design/methodology/approach
Responses obtained from university students (n=767) for Brazilian-Portuguese cooking skills and health eating questionnaire, surveyed online, were submitted to construct validity comparing two known groups. The t-test was used to compare differences between gender (male and female) and the level of cooking knowledge (high or low) in each measure of the questionnaire. Internal consistency was evaluated by obtaining the Cronbach’s coefficient.
Findings
Women showed significantly higher means than men in all scale measures, except in the self-efficacy for using basic cooking techniques (SECT), where no differences were found. Students classified as having high cooking knowledge and had higher score means in all scales compared to the students with low levels. Internal consistency was adequate for all scales (a>0.70), except for cooking attitude (CA) (a=0.33) and cooking behavior (CB) scales (a=0.59).
Research limitations/implications
SECT likely depends on cooking knowledge, independent of gender, suggesting further examination. Items and structure of CA and CB constructs also need to be examined more deeply.
Practical implications
A validated cooking skills and health-eating questionnaire demonstrated its ability to detect differences between groups, useful to provide data for further interventions.
Originality/value
No available cooking skills questionnaires were found that have been validated by the known-groups method regarding differences between gender and individuals’ level of cooking knowledge, as conducted in this study.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors thank all university students from the Federal University of Santa Catarina (UFSC) who accepted taking part in this study and their undergraduate programs that kindly forwarded the link of the questionnaire to their students. The authors also acknowledge the contributions of Professor Margaret Condrasky, Clemson University, regarding discussions about the questionnaire developed to evaluate the Cooking with Chefs’ program. The authors acknowledge the Human Resources Development Program – PRODEP (Programa de Desenvolvimento de Pessoal) at the Federal University of Alagoas (UFAL), Brazil for PhD scholarships granted to MMJ and the Federal Agency for Support and Evaluation of Graduate Education in Brazil – CAPES (Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior; CAPES) for PhD scholarships granted to GLB in Brazil and in USA, during her internship carried out at the Clemson University, South Carolina.
Citation
Jomori, M.M., Proença, R.P.d.C., Echevarria-Guanilo, M.E., Bernardo, G.L., Uggioni, P.L. and Fernandes, A.C. (2017), "Construct validity of Brazilian cooking skills and healthy eating questionnaire by the known-groups method", British Food Journal, Vol. 119 No. 5, pp. 1003-1016. https://doi.org/10.1108/BFJ-10-2016-0448
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2017, Emerald Publishing Limited