The effects of the Child and Adolescent Trial for Cardiovascular Health upon psychosocial determinants of diet and physical activity behavior.

Full Abstract

BACKGROUND: The Child and Adolescent Trial for Cardiovascular Health is a multisite study of a school-based intervention to reduce or prevent the development of risk factors for cardiovascular disease. The purpose of this paper is to present the evaluation results of the 3-year intervention, focusing upon the psychosocial variables conceptualized as determinants of dietary and physical activity behaviors. METHODS: A total of 96 schools across four study sites (California, Louisiana, Minnesota, and Texas) were randomized to two treatment conditions: intervention and control. Pre- and postmeasurements on the health behavior questionnaire were collected from over 6,000 students. The data analyses utilized a nested design approach in which schools served as the primary unit of analysis. Repeated-measures multivariate analyses were applied to investigate effect sizes for each determinant and to explore theoretical relationships among the determinants over time. RESULTS: The findings indicated sustained significant effects in improved knowledge, intentions, self-efficacy, usual behavior, and perceived social reinforcement for healthy food choices (P < 0.0001 for these five variables) after 3 years. Intermittent effects were observed for perceived support and self-efficacy for physical activity. No gender by determinant interaction effects were observed, and girls reported significantly greater perceived reinforcement for healthy eating than did boys. CONCLUSION: The CATCH program was effective in changing the psychosocial variables likely to influence a reduction in behavior for cardiovascular disease. The study is significant in that it demonstrates the viability and effectiveness of a sustained multifaceted intervention in a preadolescent population. The results point to a need for greater understanding of adolescent developmental issues and the role of community environment (particularly social support) in creating effective curricula.

Author information

Author/s: Edmundson, E (E); Parcel, G S (GS); Feldman, H A (HA); Elder, J (J); Perry, C L (CL); Johnson, C C (CC); Williston, B J (BJ); Stone, E J (EJ); Yang, M (M); Lytle, L (L); Webber, L (L);

Affiliation: University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, 78712, USA.

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Clinical Trial; Journal Article; Multicenter Study; Randomized Controlled Trial

Journal: Preventive medicine (Prev Med), published in UNITED STATES. (Language: eng)

Reference: -1996 Jul-Aug; vol 25 (issue 4) : pp 442-54

Dates: Created 1996/11/05; Completed 1996/11/05; Revised 2004/11/17;

PMID: 8812822, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 2/18/2009, IMS Date: )

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