Dietary self-efficacy and social support interactions in junior athletes' acquisition of life skills.

ABSTRACT

Objective: According to the stages of change, this study identified the association between dietary control self-efficacy and social support for healthy diets as factors influencing life skills acquisition in dietary habits among adolescents in Japan. Research design: This cross-sectional study was conducted between April and May 2018 among eight high school baseball teams in Japan. Method: Participants included 180 Japanese high school baseball players. Survey items evaluated life skills (dependent variables), self-efficacy's influence on dietary control, social support (explanatory variables), and stages of change. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis was used to reveal the associations. Results: In the pre-action stage, although there was no significant association between the interaction of self-efficacy and social support on total life skills (ß = 0.11, p = 0.158), a significant association was observed in the action/maintenance stage (ß = 0.32, p < 0.05). The interaction between self-efficacy and social support showed a significant association with goal setting in the pre-action stage (ß = 0.19, p < 0.05) and with communicating in the action/maintenance stage (ß = 0.34, p < 0.05). Conclusion: The acquisition of life skills amidst dietary situations can be facilitated by providing social support that considers self-efficacy in relation to dietary control, according to the stages of change.