Theory of planned behavior and college student 24-hour dietary recalls

Objective: The transition to college is marked by poorer eating behaviors, making emerging adulthood a particularly salient intervention point for improving lifelong health. The present study aims to better understand what psychosocial factors predict eating behaviors of college students using the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). Participants & Methods: Dietary recalls were analyzed the Healthy Eating Index (HEI)-2015 scoring system for 67 university students between the ages of 18 and 25 (70.1% female; 49.3% White, 20.9% Black/African American, 13.4% Asian). Results: Haye's PROCESS Model 6 was used. The full model accounted for a significant amount of variance in HEI-2015 scores (F[3, 63] = 3.09, p = .033, R² = .12). The final model suggested a significant indirect effect of PBC on the relation between ATT and HEI-2015 (β = .859, SE = .637, 95% CI [.009, 2.482]). Conclusions: Although some college students might have favorable attitudes, only those who believe this is within their control actually ate a (somewhat) healthier diet.