Parent and Adolescent Child Perceptions of a Grocery Store Tour: Comparison of Adult‐ versus Teen‐Led Education
Authors: Nikolaus Cassandra J. , Liguori Carli A. , Nickols‐Richardson Sharon M. 
Published: November 2023

The overall low nutrient quality of the average American diet contributes to rising chronic disease rates. Childhood obesity poses a significant concern. Prevention programs that utilize peer influence in adolescence to combat smoking and alcohol abuse have been well documented. The aim of this study was to explore the effectiveness of a grocery store tour on improving health‐related outcomes in parents and their adolescent children, and to compare adult‐led versus teen‐led models of instruction. Sixty‐one families (n=61 parents, n=71 adolescents, aged 11–14 years) were recruited from the Champaign‐Urbana area using convenience sampling techniques. Families were randomly assigned to one of three groups: 1) an adult‐led (AL) tour group (n=21), 2) a teen‐led (TL) tour group (n=20), or 3) a 6‐month control group (n=20). Only families in AL and TL groups attended one 90 minute tour with one to four families per tour. Adult and teen leaders received identical training on tour curriculum for four hours. Eighteen families attended AL tours and 15 families attended TL tours. Parents were primarily Caucasian (77%) and female (90%); adolescents primarily were Caucasian (79%) and female (55%). Average age of parents was 43 years and children was 12 years. Parents self‐reported an average BMI of 27 kg/m2. Parents and adolescents were assessed for knowledge and self‐efficacy pre‐ and post‐tour with explorative, investigator‐designed surveys; the results of the open‐ended tour perception survey, administered post‐tour, are presented here. Quantitative analysis were conducted in Rstudio (Version 2, Free Software Foundation 1991), and qualitative analysis utilized NVivo 11 for Windows (QSR International Pty Ltd.). Tour perception was assessed with survey questions about overall quality and perceived value of the tour. Overall, when asked if they liked the intervention, 94% of adults and 80% of adolescents said ‘yes.’ When asked if the lesson would help their family save money, 65% of adults and 87% of adolescents ‘believed it would.’ When asked if they would recommend the lesson to other families, 94% of adults and 80% of adolescents said ‘yes.’ Differences arose between AL and TL groups when assessing tour clarity. All parents in the AL tour reported that the lesson concepts were clear. In contrast, 33% of parents in the TL group indicated that the price comparison and unit price calculation concepts were unclear. When asked if they would have preferred more time to complete the activity comparing nutrition facts labels on products, 63% of adolescents in the TL group indicated that they ‘would have wanted more time.’ This response was not given by adolescents in the AL group. Overall perceptions of the tour were generally positive and participants found the experience to be of value. The results of this exploratory analysis suggest that the grocery store tour was well perceived by families, but there may be limitations on the effectiveness of a peer education model for implementation of a grocery store tour.

Support or Funding Information

This material is based upon work that is supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, under award number 2012‐68001‐22032.