The social, physical and temporal characteristics of primary school dining halls and their implications for children's eating behaviours

摘要

Purpose - Social, physical and temporal characteristics are known to influence the eating experiencernand the effectiveness of nutritional policies. As the school meal service features prominently in UKrnnutritional and health promotion policy, the paper's aim is to investigate the characteristics of thernprimary school dining context and their implications for eating behaviours.rnDesign/methodology/approach - A case study of one local authority in Wales was conductedrninvolving 11 primary schools stratified into socio-economic quartiles. Focussed observations wererncarried out over two to three lunchtimes per school to explore their social, physical and temporalrncharacteristics. These were supplemented by semi-structured interviews with catering staff andrnmidday supervisors.rnFindings - The dining halls had numerous generic attributes (e.g. accommodation, equipment,rnlength of lunchtime, social actors). These interacted to have a direct, but not necessarily positive,rnbearing on food choice and consumption. Overcrowded, multi-purpose dining halls coupled with timernpressures and dynamic social situations detracted from the eating experience and the ability of staff tornencourage children to eat.rnPractical implications - Without addressing these underlying issues, school nutritional policyrnmay only play a limited role in influencing what children eat. It is recommended that policy places arngreater emphasis on factors such as the eating environment; the time available for eating; and the rolernof the midday supervisor.rnOriginality/value - Previous studies of dining halls have generally been part of process evaluationsrnof nutritional interventions. This study adds value by conducting a focussed investigation into thernrelationship between the dining hall environment and eating behaviours.