What makes a good action plan? Characteristics and enactment of fruit and vegetable plans

One promising intervention strategy to increase fruit and vegetable (FV) consumption is action planning. However, conditions of successful plan enactment, i.e., the translation of plans into action, have rarely been studied. Therefore, the relationship between plan characteristics and plan enactment is being examined.

Secondary analyses of an existing data set were conducted, based on a larger behavioral intervention study with a baseline assessment as well as a 2-weeks and a 4-weeks follow-up. After baseline assessment, participants completed action plan calendars for the following seven days and subsequently reported on each plan's enactment. Two independent raters coded 1732 morning, noon/afternoon, and evening plans by n = 92 individuals regarding the level of specificity (unspecific vs. specific) and type of planned behavior (fruit vs. vegetable intake). To predict plan enactment, multilevel logistic regression analyses were conducted.

Overall specificity of plans was unrelated to plan enactment, but interacted with time of day in predicting plan enactment. Only in the morning, specific plans were more likely being enacted than unspecific plans. Overall, plan enactment decreased during the day and throughout the seven days of the plan calendar. Furthermore, fruit plans were more likely being enacted than vegetable plans.

Specific morning plans were found most beneficial for the enactment of FV plans. Here, possible underlying mechanisms such as stable morning routines should be further investigated. Moreover, the nutritional choice appeared to make a difference for plan enactment: Increasing one's fruit consumption may be easier than integrating more vegetables into one's daily diet.