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food and work surfaces. However, a challenge for foodservice
operators is motivating employees to practice appropriate
behaviors. Even though school nutrition programs are
required to have a food safety program based on HACCP,
previous observational research has reported that food
contact surfaces were properly cleaned and sanitized only
78% of the time, temperatures of foods were checked at the
completion of cooking only 62% of the time, employees
washed their hands properly and when required only 21%
of the time (14). These results indicate a need to motivate
school nutrition employees to improve their food safety
practices and behaviors.
While food safety training increases knowledge related to
proper food safety practices, training alone is not sufficient
to change behavior (13). The most common factors that
restaurant food handlers identified as influencing proper food
safety practices were time pressure due to the high volume of
food served, management and staff attention to food safety,
and problems releated to facilities, equipment, and resources
(7). To encourage improvements in on-the-job behavior
and ensure safe food handling, workplace environments and
intervention programs must address these factors so as to
achieve an environment that supports proper food safety
practices (6-9, 12-14).
According to the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), the
best predictor of actual behavior is behavioral intention (1). To
utilize the TPB to predict and motivate changes in behavioral
intention and ultimately behavior, interventions must attempt to
change people's beliefs (2). To understand which salient beliefs
to target for change, one must explore the underlying reasons
for attitudes, perceived social pressures (subjective norms), and
perceived ability to perform the behavior (perceived behavioral
control) (2). An elicitation study is often used to identify these
behavioral, normative, and control beliefs (2). Behavioral beliefs
include those related to perceived advantages and disadvantages
of performing the behavior and are linked to one's attitude. Normative beliefs are associated with caring about the performance
of the behavior and are linked to subjective norms. Control
beliefs include opinions regarding barriers and facilitators to
performing the behavior and are linked to perceived behavioral
control (2). This study used the TPB to identify salient beliefs
about food safety behaviors, in an attempt to assist in motivating
employee behavior change.
As stated by Green and Selman (7), food safety programs
should include more than food safety training if they are to
motivate safe food handling behaviors of employees, and the
workplace environment must support safe food-handling
practices (9). Therefore, the purpose of this elicitation study
was to use the TPB framework to investigate child nutrition
professionals' salient behavioral, normative, and control
beliefs to identify significant variables that can influence
behavioral intention related to three food safety practices:
proper handwashing, handling of food and work surfaces,
and the use of thermometers.

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Food Protection Trends July/August

MATERIALS AND METHODS
Focus groups were conducted to determine behavioral,
normative, and control beliefs of child nutrition professionals with regard to three key food safety behaviors. The
purpose was to obtain in-depth information about the employees' beliefs regarding proper performance of the food
safety practices.
Sample and recruitment
Participants were recruited from four school districts
in three Midwestern states. Purposive sampling was used,
with the following eligibility criteria: proximity of the
school nutrition program to the research team, current
employment in a child nutrition program as a food handler,
use of English in speaking, and age 18 years or older. School
nutrition directors were contacted by telephone to assist with
the recruitment process. Follow-up information, posters,
and sign-up documents were sent by email to increase
participation. A reminder email was sent to directors the day
before each scheduled focus group meetings.
Data collection tools
A three-section elicitation guide was developed based
on research by Ajzen (2). Each section discussed one of
the three food safety behaviors of interest: handwashing,
handling of food and work surfaces, or thermometer use.
Six open-ended questions adapted from Roberts et al. (13)
were discussed. Questions asked respondents about each
food safety behavior to determine their expectations about
positive and negative outcomes of the behavior, positive
and negative feelings about the behavior, and conditions
facilitating or impeding the performance of the behavior.
A single question addressed normative beliefs about all
three food safety behaviors in combination. A demographic
questionnaire was used to gather information on gender, age,
level of education, full-time or part-time status, length of time
working in foodservice operations, length of time working in
current operation, and food safety certification.
Data collection
The Institutional Review Board at Kansas State University approved the research protocol, and all participants
provided signed informed consent forms. Four face-to-face
focus group sessions averaging 40 to 55 minutes in length
were conducted and audio recorded, using a digital recorder. Through use of focus groups, different perspectives were
gathered, allowing for an in-depth understanding of the
constructs. Patton (10) recommended that focus groups include between six and ten participants. For this study, 10 or
11 employees participated in each focus group. A moderator
led the focus groups, with the collaboration of an assistant
moderator (15), who aided with the logistics, observed, and
took notes, using a form developed by the research team.
After each session, the moderator and assistant moderator

Food Protection Trends - July/August 2019

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