FFY 2022 Maine SNAP-Ed Social Norms Survey

Since 2013, Altarum has supported Maine’s Office for Family Independence (OFI) as the independent evaluator of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education (SNAP-Ed) activities implemented by the University of New England (UNE).

In 2022, this work included evaluation of a social norms marketing campaign in Maine schools. The Social Norms Theory posits that correcting misperceptions around perceived norms will result in a decrease in problem behavior or an increase in the desired behavior. UNE designed a social norms marketing campaign in 2021 with messaging to reach lower-income youth; aiming to correct misperceptions around peer behavior and present positive messages about healthy behaviors including eating fruits and vegetables and drinking water.

In March through May 2022, Altarum surveyed 195 Mainers in 5^th and 6^th grade to assess:

• The extent to which youth are aware of the social norms marketing campaign messages in schools,
• The ways in which youth are responding to the messages, and
• Whether perceptions of healthy eating changed since the launch of the campaign.

Download the report to learn more about the campaign and the results of Altarum’s evaluation.