Predictors Of Student Satisfaction With School Foodservice And Nutrition Programs

Nutrition Research Newsletter, March, 2000

Customer satisfaction is an important factor in the evaluation of success in today's business world. The theory that the customer should develop and monitor quality while enhancing products and services applies to all businesses, from banks to hospital foodservice systems. Recent research on customer satisfaction and school foodservice programs has found that student satisfaction is related to participation and financial stability.

Children today are food savvy: They are purchasing snacks, eating in restaurants, and going food shopping with parents by the age of six. Children are deciding what they want to eat at early ages. Therefore, a dietitian from the University of Southern Mississippi initiated a study to examine the satisfaction of middle and junior high school students with foodservice programs. Fourteen suburban schools from Massachusetts, Texas, California, Illinois, Arizona, and New Hampshire were included in this study. Students from grades 6, 7, and 8 (aged 10-15 years old) participated. Students answered 26 questions related to foodservice characteristics desired by students and eight demographic questions. A total of 2566 surveys were received.

After the data was analyzed, thirteen variables were found to predict student satisfaction. Three variables, menu items including food students like, quality of the food choices, and acceptable prices, explained 39.1% of the variance. Students who ate school lunch more frequently were more satisfied. Students who believed they had a choice of eating these lunches were significantly more satisfied than those students who believed they didn't have a choice. Girls were significantly more content than boys and sixth-grade students were significantly more satisfied than seventh-or eighth-grade students.

Mary Kay Meyer, the dietitian who conducted the study, feels the results are congruent with the changes that adolescents are going through. She believes that since adolescents are controlling their food choices, it is natural for them to seek familiar foods that look and taste good. This is in accordance with the top two predictors of satisfaction: "The school menu includes food I like," and "I like the quality of the food Choices." She also explains the increased satisfaction of girls versus boys as a result of girls maturing faster than boys, which may mean that they are more willing to try new foods at an earlier age.

Customer satisfaction is very important among foodservice programs. Now that we have data showing what affects satisfaction, researchers must work on improving these foodservice programs. Follow-up questionnaires should be used with these students to learn how to better these programs. By doing this, child nutrition professionals will assure that the optimal environment is provided for these students while making the most effective use of their resources.

Mary Kay Meyer, Top Predictors of Middle/Junior High School Students' Satisfaction with School Foodservice and Nutrition Programs, JADA 100 (1): 100-102 (January 2000).