Development and Validation of a New Questionnaire Assessing Feeding Styles in Toddlers: Toddler Feeding Style Questionnaire (TFSQ)

Abstract

Purpose: To develop and validate a new questionnaire assessing feeding styles in toddlers, the Toddler Feeding Style Questionnaire (TFSQ).

Design and methods: An instrumental design was used in this study. A convenience sample of 546 Spanish mothers of a toddler (12-24 months-old) completed the TFSQ and a web-based survey to obtain data on feeding styles, sociodemographic and anthropometric characteristics, weaning and attachment style. Items were developed and classified into two content domains: responsiveness and demandingness. For the construct validity analysis, the sample was randomly divided into two halves used to the exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, respectively. Validation hypotheses about the differences in the TFSQ scores were suggested.

Results: The factorial analysis revealed a responsiveness scale and a demandingness scale. The McDonald's Omega and Cronbach's alpha values coincided in both scales, being 0.84 and 0.75, respectively. A high responsiveness and demandingness feeding styles degree of agreement showed a statistically significant association with the correspondent scale (p < .01). The 33.3% of children who are overweight or obese have mothers who classify themselves as neglectful. Both scales were related to the mothers' attachment styles, toddler's age and the time of weaning at 6 and 12 months.

Conclusions: The TFSQ provides a valid and reliable Responsiveness and Demandingness scale to evaluate feeding styles in toddlers.

Practice implications: Parental feeding styles influence future eating behavior and children's weight. There is a lack of validated instruments used to evaluate feeding styles in toddlerhood based on the two theoretical dimensions of responsiveness and demandingness.

Keywords: Demandingness; Feeding styles; Questionnaire; Responsiveness; Toddler.