Theory of Planned Behavior - Research Paper Example

?Systematic Review Research Question and Working Hypotheses Does the theory of planned behavior explain why, when given with almost a similar array of food choices in university cafeterias, women tend to eat healthier and have healthier eating habits as compared to men? Hypothesis 1: There is a significant difference in food choices between men and women because women tend to be more weight and health conscious and choose healthier foods when given with almost a similar array of food choices. Hypothesis 2: There is a significant difference in food choices between men and women because both genders have different ideas on what are considered healthy foods when given with almost a similar array of food choices. Theory of Planned Behavior Eating is one topic that has always sparked interest because everyone consumes and needs food in order to survive. Because of this importance in daily living, issues such as food choices and eating habits have always been a concern. Pirouznia (2001) suggests that women tend to eat healthier, and thus live healthier, than men. It is important to investigate if psychosocial constructs such as perceived social norms, perceived behavioral control, attitude, intention, and subjective norms (Ajzen, 1991) play a role in the food choices and eating habits of men and women. Understanding the influence of these constructs can help determine if unhealthy eating patterns among adults can be changed by altering the set perceptions toward gender and diet. It can also aid in determining if illnesses prevailing among either males or females are associated with the differences in food choices and eating habits. This paper aims to investigate on the food choices of university students depending on their gender. It aims to analyze if the psychosocial constructs of the theory of planned behavior (Ajzen, 1991) play a role when it comes to food choices and eating habits. Scholarly databases were searched using the terms “food choices” or “eating habits” and “gender,” “sex,” “males,” “females,” “men,” “women,” “masculine,” “feminine” and other variations of these terms. To limit the search results, the focus is on studies relating to general and specific aspects of gendered eating habits and food choices from year 2000 to present. Articles that are not peer-reviewed were not considered. Natural and social science journals and databases --- food science, sociology, psychology, nutrition, and anthropology --- are utilized to ensure that studies are scholarly and credible. Articles chosen correlate to the research question in order to build a solid foundation for the study. Literature Review Several available studies report the differences between food choices and eating habits of men and women. However, the extent of influence of the psychosocial constructs of the theory of planned behavior, as it relates to gendered eating habits and food choices, has not been given much attention in the researched articles. It is said that women, compared to men, are more dominated by concerns on fat and calorie intake that sometimes lead to eating disorders such as bulimia or anorexia nervosa (Rozin, Bauer and Catanese, 2003 and Va?gstrand, et al., 2007). It is also said that the life expectancy of women is 7 years longer than men, and men in general are more prone to death caused by diseases (Wardle, et al., 2004). With such findings, it is thus important to develop a deeper understanding whether the theory of planned behavior as it relates to gender and the possible differences in the choice of foods and/or eating habits between males and females, correlates to these gendered health concerns (Shannon, et al., 2002). According to a recent article by Else-Quest, et al. (2012), adherence to social norms are influenced by moral emotions such as embarrassment, shame, guilt, and pride, and that women experience more of the embarrassment, shame, and guilt moral emotions compared to men. However, Else-Quest, et al. (2012) also states that men experience more pride than women do. If these moral emotions influence how an individual adhere to social norms, then there is a great possibility that the gendered stereotypes in diet are affected by these emotions. This concept is linked to Ajzen’s discussion on personal and moral norms. Ajzen (1991) states that one of the determinants of behavior is perceived social pressures, but individual emotions also play a big part. According to a study conducted by Caine-Bish and Scheule (2009), male children preferred meat, fish, and poultry, while female children preferred the healthier option of fruits and vegetables. This shows that children can also exhibit gender differences in food choices. Accordingly, a study conducted by Lam and Leman (2009) shows that gender and ethnicity affect some children’s judgment regarding other people’s food choices. It cannot be denied that the term ethnicity itself brings to mind the issue of norms within that specific “ethnic” society. If read this way, Lam and Leman’s study, thus, says that social norms do play a part not only in food choices, but also in other people’s perception of other’s food preferences. This influence of ethnicity, or social norms, on food choices correlates to Ajzen’s theory of planned behavior psychosocial construct of perceived social norms. In relation to the intention and attitude psychosocial constructs of the theory of planned behavior, Pliner, Remick and Rizvi (2009) report that women use food as one way to restore self-esteem and self-regard when they feel they failed in a particular arena like jobs, relationships, etc. There is therefore an influence of intention in terms of gendered food choices especially when the competitive situations where they fail place them under upward social comparisons where they are judged based on the social standards on superiority. Furthermore, the female attitude toward food choices when placed under these “failure” situations is inclined toward healthier food choices, which is also part of the perceived gendered eating habits (Pliner, Remick and Rizvi, 2009). On a similar angle, Levi, Chan and Pence (2006) states that the attitude of males in terms of decisions on food choices are largely based on the gender expectations of the society. The references conducted studies based on gender and age, and research environments and methods such as observations in school or university cafeterias, food choices in groceries and convenience stores, and interviews regarding eating habits and food choices. Such methods correlate to the chosen research method in this study, and provide a more solid foundation in the research design. However, to ensure that mere replication of previous researches will be avoided, one of the focuses of this research study will be to analyze the gap in the current knowledge on the extent of influence of the psychosocial constructs of the theory of planned behavior as it relates to the perceived gendered food choices discussed in the references. Bibliography AJZEN, I. (1991). The Theory of Planned Behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes. 50, 179-211. CAINE-BISH, N. A. L., & SCHEULE, B. A. (2009). Gender Differences in Food Preferences of School-Aged Children and Adolescents. The Journal of School Health. 79, 532-540. ELSE-QUEST, N. M., HIGGINS, A., ALLISON, C., & MORTON, L. C. (2012). Gender Differences in Self-Conscious Emotional Experience: A Meta-Analysis. Psychological Bulletin. LAM, V., & LEMAN, P. (2009). Children's Gender- and Ethnicity-based Reasoning about Foods. Social Development. 18, 478-496. LEVI, A., CHAN, K. K., & PENCE, D. (2006). Real Men Do Not Read Labels: The Effects of Masculinity and Involvement on College Students' Food Decisions. Journal of American College Health. 55, 91-98. PIROUZNIA, M. (2001). The association between nutrition knowledge and eating behavior in male and female adolescents in the US. International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition. 52, 127-132. PLINER P., REMICK A.K., & RIZVI S. (2009). Competition affects food choice in women. International Journal of Eating Disorders. 42, 557-564. ROZIN, P., BAUER, R., & CATANESE, D. (2003). Food and life, pleasure and worry, among American college students: Gender differences and regional similarities. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 85, 132-141. SHANNON C, STORY M, FULKERSON JA, & FRENCH SA. (2002). Factors in the school cafeteria influencing food choices by high school students. The Journal of School Health. 72, 229-34. VA?GSTRAND K, BARKELING B, FORSLUND HB, ELFHAG K, LINNE? Y, RO?SSNER S, & LINDROOS AK. (2007). Eating habits in relation to body fatness and gender in adolescents--results from the 'SWEDES' study. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 61, 517-25. WARDLE, J., HAASE, A., STEPTOE, A., NILLAPUN, M., JONWUTIWES, K., & BELLISIE, F. (2004). Gender differences in food choice: The contribution of health beliefs and dieting. Annals of Behavioral Medicine. 27, 107-116. Read More