Determinants of Fast-Food Consumption in Romania: An Application of the Theory of Planned Behavior

Abstract

This study explores drivers of fast-food consumption in Romania using the Theory of Planned Behavior. We analyze 532 responses to an online survey and use partial least squares path modeling to estimate the relationships between the intention to consume fast food and its possible determinants. Our results show that the most significant predictor is the subjective norms (injunctive norms: β = 0.218, p < 0.001; descriptive norms: β = 0.192, p < 0.001). Among the affective and cognitive attitudes, only the latter is statistically significant in predicting the intention (β = 0.088, p = 0.020), while perceived behavioral control is not significantly associated with intention toward fast-food consumption. We explain how our results can help policymakers to design better interventions on public health concerns about fast-food consumption and population obesity, especially children obesity.