Abstract
In order for people to make healthy food choices, the food environment needs to be improved and residents must be aware of it. This research aimed to assess the reliability and validity of the Perceived Neighborhood Food Environment (PNFE) scale, which assesses participants’ perceptions of the present condition of their food environment. Data from the Survey on the Present Condition and Consciousness of Dietary Education conducted by the Cabinet Office of Japan in 2010 were used, and 1,853 participants were included. We performed an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), and examined internal consistency and the criterion-related validity of the PNFE. The PNFE comprised two factors: “regional food culture” (5 items) and “physical availability of food” (3 items). The model fitness indices were good (GFI = .97, AGFI = .95, CFI = .96, RMSEA = .073) and Cronbach’s α was .77 for the whole scale. Reasonable results were obtained for criterion-related validity. We confirmed the reliability and validity of the PNFE scale. By utilizing the scale for future research in other countries, its reliability and validity for a wider range of residents will likely be confirmed. In addition, consideration should be given to the items used for confirming the validity of the scale in the next study to ensure that they are appropriate for other countries included in the research.
Highlights
Food choices and eating habits are influenced by one’s social environment in addition to personal preferences, knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs; environmental improvement is being undertaken for health promotion (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, 2012; Public Health England, 2018)
Consideration should be given to the items used for confirming the validity of the scale in the study to ensure that they are appropriate for other countries included in the research
In the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) examining the model obtained by the exploratory factor analysis (EFA), the fit indexes were less than satisfactory (GFI = .95, Adjusted GFI (AGFI) = .90, Comparative Fit Index (CFI) = .92, Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA) = .10, Akaike’s Information Criterion (AIC) = 403.78); we modified the factor model by checking the error correlations
Summary
Food choices and eating habits are influenced by one’s social environment in addition to personal preferences, knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs; environmental improvement is being undertaken for health promotion (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, 2012; Public Health England, 2018). Green and Glanz (2015) developed a scale for assessing perceived food environment, the Perceived Nutrition Environment Measures Survey (NEMS-P). The scale measures three factors: community nutrition environment, consumer nutrition environment, and home food environment. The community nutrition environment is measured according to the distance to the most frequented grocery stores and restaurants; consumer nutrition environment refers to the availability and price of foods and dishes at grocery stores and restaurants. The home food environment is evaluated based on the types of food available at home For these three factors, only the NEMS-P evaluates access to food. Community ties involving food affect eating behavior (Health Sciences Council, 2012). We need a scale for the food environment that includes community ties, such as interaction with one’s neighborhood or thoughts regarding the local culture
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