Document Type

Article

Publication Date

6-2016

Keywords

social marketing, child, obesity prevention, service learning, nutrition, physical activity

Abstract

This study investigated the influence of utilizing a collegiate mascot as a marketing tool for the promotion of fruit and vegetable intake and physical activity among 4th grade students. The program utilized service learning and formative research for the development of a social marketing campaign comprised of nutrition education and brand marketing. A pre-test/post-test design was used to measure fruit and vegetable intake and physical activity in participants in intervention and control schools. Awareness and understanding of the campaign was assessed post-intervention. There were no changes in fruit and vegetable intake or physical activity. However, 91% of the intervention students were able to correctly report understanding of the campaign messages, and approximately one-third of the participants were able to recall the campaign without any prompts. Results demonstrated how a social marketing campaign can utilize branding techniques to bring about awareness, which is an essential step in initiating behavior change.

Publication Title

Journal of Human Sciences and Extension

Volume

4

Issue

2

First Page

20

Last Page

33

Pages

14

Type

text

Format

application/pdf

Publisher

School of Human Sciences at Mississippi State University

Rights

Copyright © the Authors

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.

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