Date of Award

2008

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Psychology

First Advisor

Kamptner, Laura

Second Advisor

Chavez, David

Third Advisor

Wilcox-Herzog, Amanda

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine maternal influences on childhood obesity, specifically the impact of maternal modeling of eating behaviors and sensitivity/control on children's eating behaviors. It was hypothesized that: 1) maternal modeling of eating behaviors would significantly predict children's eating behaviors, 2) the degree of maternal control of children's eating cues would influence child self-regulatory ability,1 and 3) maternal modeling would have a greater relationship to child eating behavior than maternal sensitivity/control.

Participants were 153 mothers with at least one child 6 to 11 years old. Mothers completed a questionnaire ‘ assessing eating behaviors for themselves and their child (using an eating questionnaire adapted from Stunkard & Messick's [1985] Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire), a Maternal and Child Food Record, and three measures of parental control. Results showed positive and significant correlations between mothers' and children's eating behaviors, e.g., amount of food consumed, nutritional quality of food, and difficulty stopping eating.

Results only partially supported the impact of maternal sensitivity/control on children's ability to self-regulate their food intake. Finally, results overall supported that maternal modeling is more strongly related to child eating behaviors than maternal sensitivity/control. This study is an important first step towards identifying maternal factors that may impact the development of childhood obesity.

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