Eating Behaviors in Australian Military Personnel: Constructing a System of Interest for a Social Marketing Intervention

Background: Eating behaviors are complex and have particular significance for military personnel who require sound nutrition to support health and physical fitness for job performance. Policies and guidelines for the provision of nutritionally appropriate food/drink on base and in the field do exist; however, many military personnel have poor dietary habits, and these habits are evident early in their career. Social marketing could assist in changing unhealthy eating behaviors of personnel through implementation of feasible interventions co-created with stakeholders that are valued by Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel. Focus of the article: The article reports the first phase of a systemic co-inquiry into unhealthy eating behaviors of military personnel. This study aimed to gain an initial framing of the problem situation and thus hypothesize a “system of interest” in which to conduct future work. Research questions What components (e.g., ideas, objects, attributes, activities) are perceived to be relevant for eating behaviors in military personnel? Do interrelationships and interconnections among components suggest how unhealthy eating behaviors may emerge? Are there places that suggest viable leverage points as opportunities for changing unhealthy eating behaviors through delivery of offerings that ADF personnel value? Program Design/Approach: This study was part of a systemic inquiry approach. Methods: Data for the study included document analysis and 14 semi-structured depth interviews with ADF stakeholders. Data were thematically analyzed to construct a system of interest in which to explore how eating behaviors emerge among personnel and ADF-controlled leverage points that can be used to increase healthy eating for ADF personnel through social marketing intervention. Results: The data analysis identified alternative systems of interest in which to explore how eating behaviors emerge among personnel. Demand and supply side leverage points were identified. On the supply side, the encouragement of patronage through menu innovation, investment in facilities, cooking skills training, and auditing provision were opportunities for social marketing intervention. On the demand side, education and training coupled with communications that challenge cultural and regulatory norms and link to military values were areas that programs seeking to increase healthy eating in ADF personnel could focus on. Importance to the Social Marketing Field: As an approach for addressing “wicked” problems, the application of systems thinking in social marketing has privileged an ontological concept of system as a metaphor for reality. This approach assists in expanding the focus of change beyond the individual to include factors in social, economic, and policy environments. By using systems thinking as an epistemological device, this article offers an approach that may be applied to overcome practical and philosophical limitations in the application of systems thinking. Recommendations for Research or Practice: Research on alternative methods for applying systems thinking is recommended to strengthen the potential of system approaches in the field of social marketing. Limitations: This study is part of a broader program, and its findings on the problem of unhealthy eating behaviors in ADF are preliminary. Limitations specific to the study include the possibility of “reductionism” in stakeholder identification and self-selection bias in participation.