Food parenting: a selective review of current measurement and an empirical examination to inform future measurement.

BACKGROUND

Interactions between parents and children in regard to food are an important part of the development of food preferences and intake patterns for children. The measurement of this complex and multidimensional construct is very challenging.

METHODS

This article examines the current status of measurement in this domain in a selective review, considers qualitative input from parents and adolescents in an empirical examination of the topic, and makes concrete recommendations for the future.

RESULTS

Qualitatively, there were important differences between what the adolescents reported that their parents did to impact their eating habits, what parents of younger children report they currently do, and what researchers typically measure in research on parental feeding practices.

CONCLUSIONS

On the basis of these empirical findings and our review of the literature, we recommend that food parenting be measured on three levels: Feeding styles (e.g., authoritative), food parenting practices (e.g., restriction), and specific feeding behaviors (e.g., putting food out of the child's reach). Specific recommendations for future study are given for each level of measurement.