My idol eats carrots, so do I? - The delayed effect of a classroom-based intervention on 4-6-year-old children's intake of a familiar vegetable

Q: What was the purpose of the classroom-based role modelling intervention?

To examine whether role modelling would change 4–6-year-old children’s intake of a familiar vegetable, specifically carrots.

Q: How were the children assigned across the experimental conditions?

Ninety-nine children were placed into three groups: convivial eating (CE), positive restriction plus convivial eating (PR+CE), and a control group that ate carrots only without watching the role modelling video.

Q: What were the main findings about carrot intake over time?

Carrot intake did not increase immediately after the intervention, but it was higher in both intervention groups at the nine-month follow-up compared with the control group. About 40% of children consistently ate (almost) no carrots.

Aug 28, 2026

Uploaded by Aditya

This study investigated how a role modelling intervention affects young children’s intake of a familiar vegetable. Ninety-nine 4–6-year-old children participated at school in a between-subject experiment with three conditions. Two Dutch TV idols appeared as enthusiastic role models in a video shown in multiple sessions. Carrot intake was measured as the primary outcome, with demographics and eating characteristics collected by parental questionnaires and a nine-month follow-up. No immediate increase was found, but both intervention groups ate more carrots at follow-up than controls, while about 40% of children remained near non-eaters, characterized by higher fussiness and neophobia and lower liking.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages1

Reading Time3 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Study design and conditions

Outcomes and follow-up

Non-eaters and implications

My idol eats carrots, so do I? The delayed effect of a classroom-based intervention on 4–6-year-old children’s intake of a familiar vegetable Gertrude G. Zeinstra, Valesca Kooijman, Stefanie Kremer Food Quality and Preference (2017), 62, 352-359 [http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foodqual.2016.11.007](http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foodqual.2016.11.007) Corresponding author: Dr Gertrude G. Zeinstra, email [gertrude.zeinstra@wur.nl](gertrude.zeinstra@wur.nl) ABSTRACT This study aimed to investigate the effect of a role modelling intervention on children’s intake of a familiar vegetable. Ninety nine 4–6-year-old children participated at school in a between-subject experiment with three conditions. Two popular Dutch TV idols acted as enthusiastic role models in a video film that was specifically designed for this study. In the convivial eating (CE) condition, children ate raw carrots while they watched the role modelling video for eight sessions (2x/week) . Children in the positive restriction and convivial eating (PR + CE) condition were – prior to eight convivial eating sessions – involved in five sessions where they watched the video without eating carrots themselves. The control group ate carrots twice only, and never watched the role modelling video. The main outcome was vegetable intake. Information on demographics and child eating characteristics was collected via a parental questionnaire. A longer-term follow-up was executed at nine months (N = 93) . Children’s average carrot intake was 22 ± 24 g per intervention session. There was no increased intake directly after the intervention, but carrot intake in both intervention groups (CE: 45 g; PR + CE: 52 g) was 20–30 g higher at nine months (p < 0.01), whereas intake remained stable for the control group (p = 0.31) . About 40% of all children consistently ate (almost) no carrots; higher fussiness and neophobia, and lower vegetable liking typified these non-eaters. So, although the intervention did not immediately increase children’s vegetable intake, it was associated with a higher intake at follow-up. The high numbers of non-eaters points to the need for tailored interventions that encourage noneaters to consume relatively familiar – but previously rejected – vegetables. 􀂤 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

FAQs

What was the purpose of the classroom-based role modelling intervention?

To examine whether role modelling would change 4–6-year-old children’s intake of a familiar vegetable, specifically carrots.

How were the children assigned across the experimental conditions?

Ninety-nine children were placed into three groups: convivial eating (CE), positive restriction plus convivial eating (PR+CE), and a control group that ate carrots only without watching the role modelling video.

What were the main findings about carrot intake over time?

Carrot intake did not increase immediately after the intervention, but it was higher in both intervention groups at the nine-month follow-up compared with the control group. About 40% of children consistently ate (almost) no carrots.

Aug 28, 2026

Uploaded by Aditya