Beyond positivism: Understanding and addressing childhood obesity disparities through a Critical Theory perspective

Abstract

Purpose: We apply Critical Theory to examine menu labeling with the aim of uncovering important implications for nursing practice, research, and policy.

Conclusions: Our critical analysis uncovers barriers to menu labeling's effectiveness, particularly for vulnerable populations. Nurses must work to minimize the impact of these barriers and optimize the effectiveness of menu labeling, in order to strengthen the fight against obesity.

Practice implications: We suggest changes, guided by this critical analysis, which can be implemented by nurses working in clinical practice, research, and policy.

Keywords: Childhood obesity; Critical Theory; nursing.

Figure 1

A comparison of a positivistic versus a Critical Theory approach to childhood obesity. Individual, family, community, and societal factors are known to contribute to childhood obesity (Davison and Birch, 2001). A positivistic approach only considers a child's individual characteristics that contribute to weight status (center circle partially shaded), ignoring other factors that may place a child at increased risk of becoming overweight, and thus only explains a partial picture of the problem. A Critical Theory approach considers individual, family, community, and societal factors that contribute to a child's weight status (center circle fully shaded), providing a more comprehensive view of the problem.