Health and Nutrition Sciences

Project H.O.P.E. II is an extension of Project H.O.P.E. which now, through additional funding from the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services, is able to offer additional workshops and greater interaction with local communities via a project newsletter and website.

The project consists of instruction in a workshop-type format to multiple groups of student leaders (approximately 500 ten to fourteen year-olds and 400 fifteen to seventeen year-olds), their parents, school advisors, and teachers from twenty of the twenty-one counties of New Jersey. Using the Abstinence: Pick and Choose curriculum, Project H.O.P.E. II is designed to enhance decision-making skills, self-efficacy, resistance and refusal training. As the primary component of this program, students receive abstinence education as it relates to risky behaviors in all-day workshops held throughout each program year. These workshops are the foundation for students to learn educational strategies to assist in disseminating a comprehensive "no use" message within their respective schools.

Psychosocial Theory Variables Associated with Obesity Risk in Chinese Americans

Chronic diseases such as heart disease and obesity are the leading causes of death in the United States. Behavioral factors including high-fat diets and sedentary lifestyles are ranked among the most salient contributors to mortality. Epidemiological studies and mortality data provide evidence to support the growing concern about obesity risk among Americans. Social psychological theories have been used extensively to reveal key determinants of human dietary behavior. Theoretical frameworks provide a foundation in which to inform health professionals about potential variables to target in dietary interventions. However, studies using these psychosocial models have rarely been reported on Chinese Americans with the goal of elucidating their beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors in relation to obesity risk and its prevention. Because of the tremendous growth in the Chinese American population in the East coast, there is an immediate need among health professionals to understand the Chinese culture with its specific food beliefs and practices pertaining to obesity prevention. Thus, the purposes of this project are twofold: (1) to examine the beliefs and attitudes pertaining to obesity risk and its prevention in Chinese Americans via in-depth qualitative interviews, and (2) to develop and validate a survey instrument assessing the social psychological determinants of obesity risk.

Dr. Doreen Liou & Dr. Kathleen Bauer