부산대학교 도서관

Food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) is a useful tool for the assessment of usual intake in epidemiological research and is usually completed by participants themselves. In this study, participants were interviewed to explore the cognitive process underlying a care-givers’ response to a self-administered FFQ for the dietary evaluation in children in the 1∼5 year age group. A total of 10 participants were recruited voluntarily. Both of think-aloud interviewing and verbal probing techniques were applied. The major components of a 4-stage cognitive model were applied as a coding scheme for the transcribed interview, and cognitive problems were explored. In the comprehension stage, “passing over the survey instruction”, “misunderstanding frequency response category”, “unfamiliar food name”, and “similar food items” were the observed issues. In the retrieval stage, “lack of information on non-family meals”, and “forward telescoping error” and in the judgement stage, “discrepancy between consumption and presented portion in the unit” and “overestimation or underestimation of staple dishes” appeared to be the issues; while the response stage had issues regarding “confusion in the mapping of estimation” and “social desirability”. The cognitive problems revealed through the interview set the direction for an improvement in the questionnaire design. The other results of the exploration of the cognitive process could be utilized in improving the instructions for respondents and in the researcher’s guidelines which could enhance the accuracy of the survey.