Influence of food literacy on short-and long-term healthy eating intentions among adolescent and adult convenience store users: An application of the extended theory of planned behavior

Abstract

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: The present study aimed to analyze the effect of food literacy on the short-term and long-term healthy eating intentions of convenience store consumers using the Extended Theory of Planned Behavior (ETPB) framework. SUBJECTS/METHODS: A cross-sectional online survey was conducted in South Korea in September 2023. A total of 397 Korean participants were recruited through convenience sampling. The independent variables included food literacy, attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control. The chi 2 tests, t-tests, correlation analysis, and hierarchical regression were performed, with statistical significance set at P < 0.05. RESULTS: Adolescents showed significantly higher food literacy than adults (P < 0.01). In contrast, adults demonstrated higher scores in attitude (P < 0.01), subjective norm (P < 0.05), perceived behavioral control (P < 0.01), and short-term (P < 0.001) and long-term healthy eating intentions (P < 0.001). When food literacy was included as a variable in the hierarchical regression analysis, the explanatory power for short-term and long-term healthy eating intentions increased by 1.7% and 5.3%, respectively (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: The study highlights the need for customized nutrition education and continuous, systematic education on eating habits to enhance food literacy.