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Understanding low‐income parents’ decisions to participate in a subsidized fruit and vegetable buying program in four urban childcare centers
Author(s) -
Agrawal Tara,
Devine Carol,
Hoffman Jessica,
Wirth Catherine,
CastanedaSceppa Carmen
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.27.1_supplement.36.1
Subject(s) - psychological intervention , subsidy , feeling , qualitative research , head start , subsidized housing , scholarship , purchasing , psychology , business , medicine , environmental health , nursing , marketing , social psychology , economic growth , political science , developmental psychology , sociology , economics , social science , law
The Institute of Medicine recognizes increasing fruit and vegetable (F+V) access among low‐income children and their families is an important strategy to prevent childhood obesity. The aim of this qualitative study was to understand factors shaping low‐income, urban parents’ decisions to participate in Farm to Family (F2F), a subsidized fresh F+V buying program. F2F aims to increase fresh F+V consumption among young children by addressing cost and access barriers to F+V purchasing among low‐income parents in Boston, MA. Semi‐structured interviews were conducted with F2F participant (n=13) and non‐participant (n=9) parents at four of five participating Head Start programs. Analysis using the constant comparative method revealed emergent themes related to factors facilitating and inhibiting parents’ participation. Facilitating factors included perceived social, emotional, financial, and health benefits, food provisioning self‐efficacy, proximal social distance to the Head Start program, and program compatibility with personal identity and values. Inhibiting factors included parental feelings of time scarcity, limited agency in home food provisioning, and institutional communication challenges. Findings suggest strategies to engage vulnerable families in food access interventions. Funding by Boston Children's Hospital, Northeastern University, and the Gerber Pediatric Scholarship.