Utilizing photovoice to understand youth perspectives of their food environment in low-income New York City neighborhoods

BACKGROUND:  Engaging and empowering youth to promote healthy behaviors both at the individual and community levels could be important in promoting sustainable positive behaviors. Photovoice is a community-based participatory research tool giving target populations opportunities for active community engagement and advocacy through photography.  The purpose of this study was to better understand perceptions of barriers and facilitators influencing food choices in youth from low-income New York City (NYC) neighborhoods, utilizing photovoice.

METHODS: Study population included 16 primarily Hispanic middle-school students, who participated in after-school food justice programs in two low-income NYC neighborhoods. Participants were given cameras and asked to take photos to answer the question: “What influences me to make healthy and unhealthy food choices in my environment?”. The photos guided individual interviews and semi-structured focus group discussions. Inductive and deductive processes were used to identify codes (ideas emerging from text); similar codes were grouped into themes. 

RESULTS: Four major themes emerged from the data: (1) Youth face multiple barriers to a healthy food environment; (2) Food and health-related knowledge and attitudes are inconsistent and at times inaccurate; (3) Family members, particularly mothers, play a major role in personal food choices; (4) Youth suggested ways to improve the current food environment, at the community and policy levels.

CONCLUSION: Photovoice enables youth to express their health perceptions and could be an effective tool for youth to reflect on their food environment and identify opportunities to promote positive change at the individual-level and within their communities.