Social Desirability Trait Is Associated with Self-Reported Vegetable Intake among Women Enrolled in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children.

BACKGROUND

The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Fresh Start (WFS) is a randomized controlled trial of nutrition education to promote farmers' market fruit and vegetable (F/V) purchases and consumption among women enrolled in WIC.

OBJECTIVES

Using baseline data from WFS to examine associations between social desirability trait, the tendency to respond in a manner consistent with expected norms, and self-reported F/V intake and to determine whether associations, if found, are moderated by participant characteristics.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional.

PARTICIPANTS/SETTING: Seven hundred forty-four women enrolled in WFS. The setting is a New Jersey-based WIC agency located in a densely populated urban area.

MEASURES

Items assessing participant characteristics, a short form of the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale, and validated measures of the frequency and quantity of F/V intake.

STATISTICAL ANALYSES

Linear regression analysis to examine associations between social desirability trait and F/V intake and hierarchical regression analysis to test for moderation by participant characteristics of the associations between social desirability trait and F/V intake.

RESULTS

Social desirability trait was significantly associated with times per day vegetables were reported to have been consumed (β=0.08, P=0.03). The association was moderated by breastfeeding status. Among breastfeeding women, social desirability trait was unrelated to reported intake, whereas among non-breastfeeding women, it was positively associated with intake (a 1-unit increase in the social desirability score was associated with a 0.12 increase in times per day vegetables were reported to have been consumed).

CONCLUSIONS

Social desirability trait is associated with self-reported vegetable intake among WIC participants generally and non-breastfeeding participants in particular and should be assessed in these groups. Replication studies with comparative measures of "true intake" are needed to determine whether social desirability trait biases self-reports of vegetable intake or whether those with a high social desirability trait consume vegetables more often.