Presentation 2: Effects of school gardening on children’s eating behaviour and development, a scoping review.

Activity: Talk or presentationOral presentationAcademic

Description

Background: School gardening programs to enhance children’s fruit and vegetable (F&V) consumption vary in their set-up, implementation and context. Studies assessing the effects of these programs use different designs and measurement methods, and the mechanisms of change have not yet been studied extensively. This study reviews the evidence (a) on the effects of school gardening on children’s F&V consumption, (b) on their personal and social development, and aims (c) to identify proposed mechanisms of change.
Methods: The scoping review focused on primary school children (±4-12 years) going through the process from sowing to harvesting in the school garden during school-time. Community and home-based gardens were excluded. Scientific and grey literature was collected from August-2022 to February-2023, using SCOPUS, PubMed, CAB Direct, Web of Science, Google Scholar, and Groene Kennis. We included 50 articles, from 750 unique articles found.
Findings: Of the included articles, most were conducted in the US and 50% was quantitative in design, 25% qualitative, and 15% mixed-methods. Most studies focussed on children aged 6-13 years. The most frequent outcome measures assessing the effects of school gardening were dietary intake, F&V knowledge and attitude, children’s experiences with the program, and nutrition knowledge. None of the studies investigated the underlying mechanisms of change.
Discussion: School gardening mainly affected children’s self-perception, and their F&V knowledge and preference. This study highlights the need for research into how school gardening, children’s personal and social development and F&V consumption are related – crucial to develop effective school garden interventions.
Period4 Sept 20238 Sept 2023
Event title37th Annual Conference of the European Health Psychology Society (2023): Health Psychology for all: Equity, Inclusiveness and Transformation
Event typeConference/symposium
LocationBremen, GermanyShow on map