Premium
Nutrition Education for Low‐Income Population through Social Marketing: Insight from SNAP‐Ed Eligible Participants
Author(s) -
Hagues Rachel,
Childers Austin,
Lee Jung Sun,
Phua Joe
Publication year - 2016
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.30.1_supplement.901.24
Subject(s) - focus group , social marketing , supplemental nutrition assistance program , psychological intervention , poverty , nutrition education , thematic analysis , population , public health , medicine , atlanta , gerontology , qualitative research , psychology , environmental health , medical education , marketing , food security , geography , economic growth , business , food insecurity , nursing , sociology , metropolitan area , economics , social science , archaeology , pathology , agriculture
Social Marketing (SM) has been used to deliver public health interventions, and has the potential to deliver nutrition education interventions targeted to large, low‐income population quickly at low‐costs. The purpose of this study was to conduct focus group interviews with those that qualify for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education (SNAP‐Ed) (185% of poverty) to learn their perspectives on benefits, barriers to accessing messages and food, suggested content, and media channels most useable for them to be able to best segment nutrition social marketing messages. Two focus groups in each quadrant of Georgia were conducted for a total of 8 focus group interviews. Groups were held in both rural and urban areas; settings ranged from community centers, to housing authorities, to schools. Sixty‐nine individuals participated, representing a range of rural – urban counties. The research team developed a semi‐structured interview guide. Focus groups were tape‐recorded and transcribed; a thematic analysis was conducted using Atlas.ti. To ensure findings were accurate and credible, a summary was distributed to each group to be given to all participants for member checking. Data from each group were compared across urban/rural and north/south/east/west. Participants understood some of the benefits of eating healthy foods and wanted to know more, such as how to cook for someone with chronic conditions (e.g., diabetes). Participants identified many barriers to healthy eating including culture, high costs and lack of availability of healthy food. Participants in the Atlanta area talked about having a lack of time due to long commutes. Many participants wanted to learn ways to reduce sodium in food, as well as ideas for cooking southern traditional foods they have typically fried through healthier means. Several African American participants emphasized the need to make messages culturally relevant. Participants expressed their interest and need for more education on serving sizes, measurement conversions, and healthy substitutions The majority of participants reported they can get online and access nutrition information via mobile devices, especially smart phones, unless they are out of data. While participants reported having Internet access, it is not always as accessible from home in rural areas as urban. Sometimes rural participants reported needing to go to public places to access it. Participants reported they search and obtain nutrition and health information often through Google and Facebook. In conclusion, a segmented marketing approach may help reach Georgians with low‐income, particularly if segmented by urban/rural and across the various cultures that exist within the State. Because participants have more access to the Internet than anticipated, social media marketing could be an effective intervention. Support or Funding Information This project was funded by USDA SNAP‐Ed