Assessment of the Influence of Kitchen Space Quality on the Cooking and Dietary Habits of University Students
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Date
2021
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NSUK-Journal of Environmental Science
Abstract
The design of students' residential environments facilitates healthy living practices, such as improved nutrition, which plays a key role in health outcomes. This study,conducted through a cross-sectional survey of students residing on
campus residence halls in the University of Ilorin, Nigeria, assessed the influence of kitchen space quality on students' cooking and dietary habits to inform the built environment and health research. Four hundred and thirty (430) questionnaire were administered on students residing in twelve (12) residence halls purposively sampled among the
twenty (20) residence halls on campus at the time this study was carried out. Primary data was collected through the use of questionnaire and observation schedule. The questionnaire were administered to elicit information on the demographic characteristics of the respondents and their cooking habits in the residence halls while the observation schedule, prepared and filled objectively by the researcher was used to collect information on the residence hall design with respect to room-kitchen arrangements. Descriptive statistics, chi square and logistic regression analysis was used to analyse the data. The results revealed that gender and level of study influenced the cooking habit of students. It also showed that the quality of the kitchen significantly influenced the cooking habit of respondents. Therefore, the study recommends that architects and property developers concerned with the design and construction of students' residence halls pay more attention to providing and furnishing the cooking spaces in the female residence halls than in the male residence halls. This is because cooking habit was found to be gender sensitive. The study further recommends that the quality of cooking spaces in students' residence halls should be continuously improved so that students will find it convenient to cook thereby, maintaining proper dietary habits.
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Keywords
Kitchen space, Quality, Cooking habits, Residence hall, University students