Encouraging Healthy and Sustainable Dietary Substitutions

Not Applicable

Completed

Interventions: Behavioral: Health messages
Behavioral: Health and environmental messages
Behavioral: Environmental messages
Behavioral: Neutral messages

Brief Summary: The aim of this study is to examine emerging adults' responses to dietary substitution messages about health, the environment, or both health and the environment.

Detailed Description: This online study will examine emerging adults' responses to dietary substitution messages about 4 different topics. Participants will be randomized to 1 of 4 topic arms: 1) Control (neutral topic, not related to health or the environment); 2) Health topic; 3) Environment topic; 4) Health and Environment topic. Participants will view messages about each of 4 dietary substitutions: replacing red meat with chicken or vegetarian options; replacing dairy milk with non-dairy milk; replacing juice with whole fruit; and replacing sugar-sweetened beverages with water. For each dietary substitution, participants will view 2 messages about their assigned topic, with the 2 messages shown in random order. Participants will rate each message on perceived message effectiveness (primary outcome).

Recruitment & Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria

Exclusion Criteria

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
Health messages	Health messages	Messages shown will be related to the health impacts of making certain dietary substitutions (replacing beef with chicken and vegetarian entrees; replacing juice with whole fruit; replacing dairy milk with non-dairy milk; replacing sugar-sweetened beverages with water).
Health and environment messages	Health and environmental messages	Messages shown will be related to the health and environmental impacts of making certain dietary substitutions (replacing beef with chicken and vegetarian entrees; replacing juice with whole fruit; replacing dairy milk with non-dairy milk; replacing sugar-sweetened beverages with water).
Environment messages	Environmental messages	Messages shown will be related to the environmental impacts of making certain dietary substitutions (replacing beef with chicken and vegetarian entrees; replacing juice with whole fruit; replacing dairy milk with non-dairy milk; replacing sugar-sweetened beverages with water).
Neutral messages	Neutral messages	Messages shown will be neutral and unrelated to the health or environmental impacts of making certain dietary substitutions (replacing beef with chicken and vegetarian entrees; replacing juice with whole fruit; replacing dairy milk with non-dairy milk; replacing sugar-sweetened beverages with water).

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Perceived Message Effectiveness	Survey questions administered after participant viewed each message; overall survey took up to 20 minutes	Participants will rate each message on perceived message effectiveness (PME) for encouraging participants to make the target dietary substitution. PME will be assessed with 4 items \[the text shown in brackets will be tailored to each substitution\]: 1. How much does this message discourage you from wanting to \[eat beef and pork / drink juice / drink cow's milk / drink sugary drinks\]? 2. How much does this message make \[eating beef and pork, etc.\] seem unpleasant to you? 3. How much does this message make you concerned about the effects of \[eating beef and pork, etc.\]? 4. How much does this message make you want to \[eat chicken or vegetarian options instead of beef and pork, etc.\]? The response options for each item are: 1=Not at all, 2=Very little, 3=Somewhat, 4=Quite a bit, 5=A great deal. Investigators will average responses to these 4 items to create a perceived message effectiveness score. Higher scores indicated higher perceived message effectiveness.