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Social scientists often speculate that both acculturation and socioeconomic status are factors that may explain differences in the body weight between Mexican Americans and whites and between Mexican Americans and Mexican immigrants, yet prior research has not explicitly theorized and tested the pathways that lead both of these upstream factors to contribute to ethnic/nativity disparities in weight. We make this contribution to the literature by developing a conceptual model drawing from Glass and McAtee’s (2006) risk regulation framework. We test this model by analyzing data from the 1999–2012 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Our conceptual model treats acculturation and socioeconomic status as risk regulators, or social factors that place individuals in positions where they are at risk for health risk behaviors that negatively influence health outcomes. We specifically argue that acculturation and low socioeconomic status contribute to less healthy diets, lower physical activity, and chronic stress, which then increases the risk of weight gain. We further contend that pathways from ethnicity/nativity and through acculturation and socioeconomic status likely explain disparities in weight gain between Mexican Americans and whites and between Mexican immigrants and whites. Study results largely support our conceptual model and have implications for thinking about solutions for reducing ethnic/nativity disparities in weight.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the determinants of halal meat consumption within the population of Chinese Muslims in China using the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) as a conceptual framework. The role of self-identity as a Muslim, dietary acculturation in the host culture, moral obligation to purchase halal meat and trust on the authenticity of halal meat are explored.

Cross-sectional data were collected through a survey with 378 Chinese Muslims, currently living in Beijing and Xian cities. Data were analysed by means of correlations and stepwise multiple regressions to test the model and the moderating effects of self-identity, dietary acculturation, moral obligation and trust on behavioural intention.

A positive personal attitude towards the consumption of halal meat, personal conviction, motivation to comply, perceived control over consuming halal meat and perceived availability of halal meat predict the intention to eat halal meat among Chinese Muslims.

Limitations include the focus on only four individual characteristics related to religious food consumption, namely, self-identity, dietary acculturation, moral obligation and trust. Additional individual characteristics such as individualism-collectivism and involvement or values could improve the predictive power of the model.

Practical implications extend to food marketers and food policy decision-makers who might pursue identity, acculturation, trustworthiness and moral obligation-related strategies in their distribution and communication efforts targeted at the growing halal food market segments across China and worldwide.

The current study addresses the important limitation of previous studies regarding the inclusion of additional possible individual characteristics such as moral obligation and trust in the TPB model to investigate the determinants of halal meat consumption within a food-religion context.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the determinants of halal meat consumption within a Turkish Muslim migration population in Germany using the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) as a conceptual framework. The role of self-identity as a Muslim, dietary acculturation in the host culture, moral obligation to purchase halal food and trust on the authenticity of available halal food are explored.

A quantitative cross-sectional survey design for the current study was adopted. Purposive sampling through self-administered questionnaires was used to collect data from 517 Muslim consumers originated from Turkey and currently living in Germany. The analysis includes exploratory factor analysis, means scores, linear correlation and multiple regressions to examine the determinants of halal meat consumption.

A positive personal attitude towards the consumption of halal meat, motivation to comply with the opinion of important persons and institutions and the perceived control over consuming halal meat predict the intention to eat halal meat among Muslims.

This study used self-identity, dietary acculturation, trust and moral obligation as moderator variables. Future research should also examine the moderating effects of values such as individualism/collectivism and materialism and demographic factors such as age, country of origin, education level and income level to increase the predictive power of the current TPB model.

Practical implications can be extended to those policymakers, marketing managers and advertising agencies dealing with food-related products. They can pursue strategies based on religious self-identity, dietary acculturation, trustworthiness and moral obligation factors in their distribution and communication efforts targeted at the growing local and international market of halal food.

This is one of the few studies investigating the determinants of halal meat consumption in a Muslim population in Germany using the TPB within a food, religion and migration context.

Meat consumption decisions within a religious context can differ significantly from purchase decisions where religion does not play a key role. The purpose of this study is to investigate the determinants of Halal meat consumption within a Chinese Muslim population using the “marketing theory of planned behavior”. The role of self-identity as a Muslim and dietary acculturation in the host culture is investigated.

The study is based on a questionnaire survey. Cross-sectional data were collected through a survey of 368 Muslim participants, mainly from Xinjiang province in China. Data were analyzed by a series of regression analyses to test the model and the moderating effects of self-identity and dietary acculturation on behavioral intention.

The results indicate that motivation to comply with religious requirements, and personal conviction, have a positive attitude toward behavioral intention to consume Halal meat. However, perceived control has a negative relationship with behavioral intention to eat Halal meat among Muslims. Results also show that in general, Halal meat consumption is determined by the pressure of others, personal conviction, and the perceived control.

For marketing managers, Muslims with a low Muslim identity can be motivated to buy Halal meat by communicating through slogans that focus on the individual's opportunity to make his or her own choice(s).

This paper will prove valuable to food-policy decision makers and food marketers, who might pursue identity and/or acculturation-related strategies in their distribution and communication efforts targeting the growing Halal food market segment in China and globally.

The purpose of this study is to investigate whether length of time spent in the USA impacts perceptions of international students studying in US schools regarding the service and food quality of on‐campus foodservice operations.

The researchers surveyed international students at one Southeastern and one Southwestern university in the USA regarding their perceptions of university foodservice, divided into six factors, i.e. service and sanitation, food dislikes, selection and taste, drinks, value, and crowding. A two‐way MANOVA test was performed using SPSS Version 17.0 to identify any significant differences between the six factors, time in the USA, and universities.

MANOVA testing indicated that there was a significant difference between length of time in the USA and the ratings of the service and sanitation factor. The group that had been in the USA for less than six months rated the service and sanitation factor higher than the group who had been in the USA for over a year.

Campus administrators and food service operators need to consider that the interaction and socialization provided by the on‐campus dining experience may be an important step of the adaption process for international students.

The study applies theoretical concepts regarding service quality and adaptation that have not been used previously to study international students and their on‐campus foodservice preferences.

Focussing on Latin American immigrants in Barcelona, the objective of this paper is twofold: to measure their degree of ethnical identity; and to analyse the relationship between food habits and their ethnical identity.

Face‐to‐face interviews with a representative sample of Latin American immigrants in the Metropolitan area of Barcelona are undertaken. Ethnic identity is measured using the MEIM scale, which combines aspects from the social identity and personal development theories. Finally, a Multinomial Logit Model is used to identify the relationship between food habits and ethnical identity.

Results indicate that the higher the level of ethnic identity and feeling of belonging of immigrants in Catalonia, the greater the persistence of dietary habits from the country of origin. Contrasting with results from other studies, no correlation is found between the persistence of dietary habits and either the length of time spent in Spain or the level of integration into the Catalan culture (measured through use of the Catalan language).

Findings should logically be interpreted within the context of the population and sample studied. Further research should be addressed to analyze other immigrant groups such as Muslims, Asians and Eastern Europeans.

This study explores the strength of traditional food habits of immigrants living in a foreign cultural environment and the role of ethnic identity in contributing to this strength. While past literature focussing on this topic is based on atheoretical and partial indicators to measure ethnic identity, this study provides evidence on the usefulness of using a theory‐based and multidimensional measure. The behaviour of Latin American immigrants in Spain is used as a case study.

The purpose of this paper is to understand to what extent, the process of acculturation and the strategies which ensue from it can affect the self-declared health as regards the lifestyle, the physical activity, the diet and the well-being of first-generation immigrants living in the Montreal region (Quebec, Canada).

A supervised survey was administered to adult allophones immigrants attending French-language courses, autumn 2011 (506 valid surveys). The authors discuss the concept and the validation of their acculturation model and its relevance in regard of the purposes of the research.

The indicator allowed to clearly identify three groups that differentiate on numerous variables of the survey. Independently of the acculturations strategies adopted by the respondents, the authors observe a deterioration of the self-declared overall state of health, development of sedentary living, a fairly high level of stress and depressive episode within the entire sample. However, the group isolated as “retention” has consistently the lowest scores on all these variables. In terms of public health and health social inequalities issues these results are worrisome. The “assimilation” group have the highest scores and the “integration” group consistently shows and intermediate “balancing” position.

The authors claim that the strategies of acculturation are not always the expression of a free will. They are also the product of constraints specific to the host society and are just as much the result of the pre-migratory socialization. This is especially the case of the “retention” group and more specifically of women. The negative effects of social, cultural and economic constraints of the host society on overall health, well-being and lifestyle as well as adaptation strategies should be monitored in a more systematic manner in recent immigrant populations and be specifically addressed in immigrant integration policies and programmes.

The study aims to have adults discuss experiences, practices needs and feelings related to health management, diet and food security.

A total of 22 immigrants were recruited from the Open School of Immigrants in Piraeus, Attica, Greece, to participate in focus group discussions. The discussions were audio recorded and thematically analyzed. Three major themes were developed: pathways to health care, nutrition management and experiences related to food shortages.

Most of the participants identified internet as the most commonly used way to obtain health advice; they also stated that unexpected ill-health is usually accompanied by feelings of fear, anxiety and loneliness. Immigrants, who had visited a public hospital in Greece, identified the language barrier as the most challenging issue, followed by the long waiting lists. Fear and anxiety of hospital visits was an important factor in their decision to vaccinate against COVID-19. Lack of time, high cost of healthy food and lack of knowledge were the most common obstacles to a healthy diet. One in two immigrants reported that they have faced food insecurity issues in the past. Stress, psychological distress and irritation were reported, due to food shortages, especially during the first few years of arriving in Greece. The exclusion of some foods, reduced portion sizes and buying cheaper foods were among the coping strategies to address food shortages.

The study offers an insight into immigrant’s experiences, practices and feelings about managing health issues and could be useful for health-care practitioners, researchers and policymakers.

The purpose of this study is to explore the acculturation caused by the Korean wave among Indonesian Muslim consumers, especially in the food and cosmetic sectors, based on religious grounds.

Data were collected through focus group interviews with 20 Muslim respondents in Indonesia.

The findings specifically highlighted that Muslim consumers’ acceptance of Korean products varied. Muslim consumers’ acceptance was influenced by similarities and differences in values between Islamic and Korean cultures. Consumers categorised into each acculturation mode (assimilation, separation, integration and marginalisation) showed different behavioural patterns in Korean product acceptance. This study proposes that global products can be optimised through specific and targeted marketing campaigns for different types of Muslim consumers with products that comply with their religious values.

Few studies have explored the importance of religious values (e.g. righteousness, compassion and respect for others) with respect to the acceptance of foreign products in the acculturation context. Additionally, how values from other cultures reconcile with the Indonesian Muslims’ affinity for Korean culture has been limitedly studied. This study aims to fill these gaps by identifying the role of religious factors in the acceptance of global products by taking the example of Indonesian Muslim consumers and Korean products.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the determinants of halal meat consumption within a Muslim migration population using the theory of planned behaviour as a conceptual framework. The role of self‐identity as a Muslim and dietary acculturation in the host culture is explored.

Cross‐sectional data were collected through a survey with 576 Muslims mainly originating from North Africa and currently living in France. Data were analysed by means of independent samples' t‐tests, correlations and stepwise multiple regression.

A positive personal attitude towards the consumption of halal meat, the influence of peers and the perceived control over consuming halal meat predict the intention to eat halal meat among Muslims.

Limitations include the use of a convenience sample and the focus on only two individual characteristics related to religious food consumption, namely self‐identity and dietary acculturation. Additional individual characteristics such as trust, values or involvement could improve the predictive power of the model.

Practical implications extend to food policy decision‐makers and food marketers who might pursue identity – and/or acculturation‐related strategies in their distribution and communication efforts targeted at the growing halal food market segment in Western Europe.

This study is one of the first studies investigating the determinants of halal meat consumption in general and a first application of the theory of planned behaviour within a food, religion and migration context, i.e. halal meat consumption decisions in a Muslim migration population in France. In general, this study indicates that the predictive power of the classic TPB in this very specific context is limited.