Health Belief Model constructs and teachers' use of food rewards

Classroom celebrations and food rewards are substantial sources of unhealthy foods within the school environment in the USA. This study was designed to describe classroom food reward practices and examine the association between food rewards and constructs of the Health Belief Model (HBM).

An online survey using summated scales of food reward frequency and HBM constructs.

The online survey was distributed to elementary schools throughout seven Midwestern states from November through December 2023.

Elementary school teachers (n 256).

Candy was the most frequently used food reward with the majority of teachers (55·9 %) reporting they utilised candy at least 'sometimes'. Bi-variant analysis revealed food reward frequency was positively correlated with perceived barriers to refraining from the use of food rewards (r = 0·47, P < 0·01) and negatively correlated with policy cues to action (r = -0·22, P < 0·01). Multiple regression analysis predicted food reward frequency (R = 0·47, F (3247) 23·62, P < 0·001), but only perceived barriers (β = 0·45; P < 0·001) contributed significantly to the prediction.

Classroom food rewards are common, and perceived barriers (but not perceived threat or policy cues) were associated with food rewards among this sample of teachers. Reducing barriers to refraining from the use of food rewards may begin to reduce the practice of using classroom food rewards.