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Review
. 2016 Feb;74(2):98-117.
doi: 10.1093/nutrit/nuv061. Epub 2016 Jan 2.

Fundamental constructs in food parenting practices: a content map to guide future research

Affiliations
Review

Fundamental constructs in food parenting practices: a content map to guide future research

Amber E Vaughn et al. Nutr Rev. 2016 Feb.

Abstract

Although research shows that "food parenting practices" can impact children's diet and eating habits, current understanding of the impact of specific practices has been limited by inconsistencies in terminology and definitions. This article represents a critical appraisal of food parenting practices, including clear terminology and definitions, by a working group of content experts. The result of this effort was the development of a content map for future research that presents 3 overarching, higher-order food parenting constructs--coercive control, structure, and autonomy support--as well as specific practice subconstructs. Coercive control includes restriction, pressure to eat, threats and bribes, and using food to control negative emotions. Structure includes rules and limits, limited/guided choices, monitoring, meal- and snacktime routines, modeling, food availability and accessibility, food preparation, and unstructured practices. Autonomy support includes nutrition education, child involvement, encouragement, praise, reasoning, and negotiation. Literature on each construct is reviewed, and directions for future research are offered. Clear terminology and definitions should facilitate cross-study comparisons and minimize conflicting findings resulting from previous discrepancies in construct operationalization.

Keywords: children; eating behaviors; feeding practices; obesity..

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Content map of food parenting practices
Figure 2
Figure 2
Conceptual model of food parenting practices highlighting current hypotheses in the literature. The figure is labeled with A, B, C, and D to facilitate grouping of these hypotheses. (A) hypotheses around the influence of family characteristics on food parenting practices, child diet, and child weight; (B) hypotheses around the influence of parent characteristics on food parenting practices, child diet, and child weight; (C) hypotheses around the influence of child characteristics on food parenting practices, child diet, and child weight; and (D) hypotheses around the bidirectional relationships between food parenting practices, child diet, and child weight.

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