Surprising Advantages of Low Self-Efficacy Revealed in a Sports Nutrition Education

Objectives To determine the influence of educational sports nutrition programs on adolescent athlete's nutritional habits and on the general and academic self-efficacy of nutrition students who facilitated the program. MethodsAn intervention framework and a convergent mixed-methods approach were used for this study. A questionnaire to examine knowledge of sports nutrition and an eating diary were used for tracking results at 3 points in time; beginning, end of the program and 3 months follow up. Nutrition students completed questionnaires examining their general and academic self-efficacy at 4 points during the study. Participants included 49 athletes aged 13-15 (26 boys and 23 girls) and 30 nutrition students. ResultsSignificant improvements were found in knowledge and nutrition behavior of athletes and in the general and academic self-efficacy of the nutrition students. ConclusionParticipation in the intervention program led to improvements of the adolescent athletes' nutritional knowledge and behavior. Implementation of the program in the framework of an academic nutrition studies course improved the general and academic self-efficacy of the nutrition students. Use of the RRA approach transformed the students from passive learners to active teachers.