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Updated: Aug 15, 2026
'Boden Food Plate': Novel Interactive Web-based Method for the Assessment of Dietary Intake
Published on: September 18, 2018
Comparability and reliability of paper- and computer-based measures of psychosocial constructs for adolescent fruit
Athena S Hagler1, Gregory J Norman, Lindsey R Radick
1University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Dr, Department 0811, La Jolla, CA 92093-0811, USA. ahagler@paceproject.org
Background:
This study investigated the comparability and reliability of computer- and paper-based measures of psychosocial constructs related to fruit and vegetable and dietary fat intake among adolescents.
Methods:
An ethnically diverse sample of 76 adolescents was studied (mean age 13 years). Scales measured use of change strategies, self-efficacy, decisional balance, family influences, and peer influences separately for the two dietary outcomes.
Results:
Comparability analyses indicated that responses for each of the 12 diet-related scales were not significantly different between the computer- and paper-based surveys. Internal consistencies were generally high (alpha from .61 to .97) with slightly better reliability on the computer- vs paper-based surveys. Test-retest reliabilities were adequate to good for most multiple-item scales (interclass correlation coefficients from .43 to .85 and .48 to .90 for paper and computer formats, respectively).
Conclusions:
Computer- and paper-based measures of psychosocial constructs are appropriate and ready for use in either format for studies of dietary behaviors in young people.
