Objective: To assess the validity of a self-reported fruit, juice, and vegetable home availability measure.
Design: Cross-sectional.
Setting: In-home interviews.
Participants: Forty-eight parents of fourth to sixth grade children.
Main outcome measures: Scales assessing self-reported home availability of fruit, 100% fruit juice, and vegetables over the past 7 days compared with an observed home inventory conducted on the interview day.
Analyses: Cohen's kappa of agreement, specificity and sensitivity, and correlations, with significance level <.05.
Results: There was substantial agreement between self-reported and observed home inventories of many fruit, 100% fruit juice, and vegetables among participating families in this study.
Conclusions and implications: Self-reported shelf inventories can be an effective tool for use in assessing the availability of fruit, juice, and vegetables in the home.