School Nutrition Services (SNS) Research

Publication: JAND

Date Published: April 2016

Reference: 

A Randomized Controlled Trial of the Food Dudes Program: Tangible Rewards Are More Effective Than Social Rewards for Increasing Short- and Long-Term Fruit and Vegetable Consumption
Morrill, Brooke A. et al.
Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Volume 116, Issue 4, 618 - 629

Key Takeaways: The study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of different types of incentives in promoting fruits and vegetables (F/V) in consumption among elementary school children. The research was conducted in six schools with 2,2292 students participating, Each student was assigned to either three groups: a social praise group, a tangible reward group, and a control group. During the initial phase of the intervention the the tangible reward group and the social praise group showed a significant increase in the F/V compared to the control group, however tangible group had a more significant increase in F/V (92%) than the social praise group (50%). After the 6 month follow up only the tangible reward group maintained a higher level of F/V than the control group.

#Interventions