| Description |
There is mounting evidence for the effectiveness of youth gardening programs in increasing fruit and vegetable consumption among children who consistently attend such programs. Unfortunately, existing research does not address whether youth gardens can influence the emotional wellbeing of program participants. Changes in emotional wellbeing may be an important outcome for youth with infrequent garden attendance. This is a significant gap in research that presented an opportunity for this study. Wasatch Community Gardens (WCG), located in Salt Lake City, Utah, has developed partnerships with community agencies (e.g., Boys & Girls Club) to provide their City Roots youth gardening programs. In weekly 1-hour classes, youth learn how to harvest and prepare fresh fruits and vegetables grown in WCG gardens. Although classes are offered on a weekly basis, participants from each agency differ week-to-week. This project assessed whether the City Roots youth gardening program impacts the short-term emotional wellbeing of youth ages 8-18 years old. This study had a total of 65 participants in summer and fall of 2015. Outcomes were measured through surveys given at the beginning of youth gardening classes, surveys given at the end of classes, and through a photo art project. Using components of existing food consumption surveys, a self-regulation tool, and other measures adapted specifically for evaluating youth gardening programs, we expected to see improvements in emotional wellbeing with some variation also attributable to sociodemographic variables. Results from our data show generally positive emotional states for youth gardening participants at the beginning of classes and at the end, with significant change shown on some emotional wellbeing measures between pre- and posttesting varying by sociodemographic characteristics. Unlike previously conducted gardening research, this study assessed participants up to the age of 18, participants with infrequent garden attendance, had an explicit focus on the emotional state of children, and included a separate qualitative collection focusing on influences of childrens vegetable preferences. This study is unique in comparison to published works, which gives it an important role in informing the format and curriculum used in community youth gardening programs as well as future youth gardening evaluation research. |
