Women’s Income and Healthy Eating Perception
Gender and Food: From Production to Consumption and After
ISBN: 978-1-78635-054-1, eISBN: 978-1-78635-053-4
Publication date: 22 August 2016
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of the chapter is to explore the relation between women’s healthy eating intention and food attitudes, beliefs, perceptions, and barriers with a focus on the effect of women’s income differences.
Methodology/approach
The research applies the Theory of Planned Behavior, including attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, perceived barriers, and ability opportunity resources. Close-ended survey responses of 704 women between ages 25 and 65 years, affluent and at-risk-of-poverty women in three EU-member countries were analyzed.
Findings
Women are mostly positively inclined towards healthy eating, and income does not differentiate women’s inclination. Influencing factors are perceived behavioral control, attitudes towards healthy eating, subjective norms, and level of knowledge regarding healthy food. Barriers, when present, are similar for lower or higher income women and relate to routinized family habits and food affordability and availability.
Research limitations/implications
Future research should thoroughly investigate family network and structure features, with a focus on family food preferences and habits.
Social and practical implications
Encouraging women’s healthy behavior also impacts children and men, and vice-versa. There is need to target all family components with enjoyable, self-rewarding, emotionally gratifying, and pleasant tasting food.
Originality/value
Income is an overestimated driver in healthy food choices. Women are strongly influenced by personal and environmental factors, mainly personal control, feelings, and family habits.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
Acknowledgments
This investigation was carried out within the framework of the EC FP7 funded project “CHANCE – Low cost technologies and traditional ingredients for the production of affordable, nutritionally correct foods improving health in population groups at-risk-of-poverty” (www.chancefood.eu).
Citation
Samoggia, A., Bertazzoli, A., Hendrixson, V., Glibetic, M. and Arvola, A. (2016), "Women’s Income and Healthy Eating Perception", Gender and Food: From Production to Consumption and After (Advances in Gender Research, Vol. 22), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 165-191. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1529-212620160000022018
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2016 Emerald Group Publishing Limited