Publication: Food Education for Whom?: Perceptions of Food Education and Literacy among Dietitians and Laypeople in Urban Japan
Issued Date
2017
Resource Type
Language
eng
Rights
Mahidol University
Rights Holder(s)
Common Ground Research Networks
Bibliographic Citation
Food Studies: An Interdisciplinary Journal. Vol.7, No. 4 (2017), 49-66
Suggested Citation
Takeda, Wakako, Melby, Melissa K., Ishikawa, Yuta Food Education for Whom?: Perceptions of Food Education and Literacy among Dietitians and Laypeople in Urban Japan. Food Studies: An Interdisciplinary Journal. Vol.7, No. 4 (2017), 49-66. doi:http://doi.org/10.18848/2160-1933/CGP/v07i04/49-66 Retrieved from: https://repository.li.mahidol.ac.th/handle/20.500.14594/8744
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Organizational Units
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Journal Issue
Thesis
Title
Food Education for Whom?: Perceptions of Food Education and Literacy among Dietitians and Laypeople in Urban Japan
Author(s)
Other Contributor(s)
Abstract
Despite the growing popularity of food education and food literacy, the diversity and complexity of ideas about
food education among people from different backgrounds have not yet been examined. To explore people’s
understandings about food education and examine patterns among people of different occupation, gender, age, and
household structure, we conducted in-depth interviews with 120 laypeople (divided equally by gender and six decadal
age groups from twenties to seventies) and sixty dietitians in two urban areas in Japan. Participants were asked to
freelist responses to the question, “What do you associate with the word ‘Shokuiku’ (food education)?” Responses were
analyzed by principal component analysis. Dietitians and lay females tended to associate food education with several
interconnected aspects including food knowledge, habits, and food system, while lay males tended to view it as school
education targeting children only. The results suggest that the current food education framework may lead some lay
males in urban Japan to believe food education and food literacy are only for children and not relevant for them. To
improve effectiveness of programs for diverse populations, it is necessary to reconsider the current framework which
focuses excessively on children as well as food consumption.