Abstract
The objective of this study was to identify food- and nutrition-related attitudes of elderly persons living alone. We interviewed 66 individuals who were retired and 60 years of age or older. The instrument used to assess the attitudes consisted of 97 belief statements relating food and nutrition to food use, cost, convenience, health, social status, aesthetic-sensory perceptions, and quality. We analyzed the responses to all belief statements by factor analysis and calculated attitude scores for each respondent. Four salient attitude factors emerged and were labeled “social-adventuresome,” “frugal-utilitarian,” “qualitative-pleasurable,” and “nutritious-healthful.” Although these attitudes were predominant among the respondents, there was variation to what degree each respondent agreed or disagreed with each attitude factor, as measured by the respondent's attitude score. None of the attitude factors correlated with age. The identified attitude factors have been observed among other population groups, a finding that suggests that segmenting a population by chronological age instead of by needs is not the best approach to the development of a food and nutrition education program.
Published Version
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