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The role of weight stigma in parental weight talk
Author(s) -
Pudney Ellen V.,
Himmelstein Mary S.,
Puhl Rebecca M.
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
pediatric obesity
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.226
H-Index - 69
eISSN - 2047-6310
pISSN - 2047-6302
DOI - 10.1111/ijpo.12534
Subject(s) - weight stigma , developmental psychology , stigma (botany) , medicine , affect (linguistics) , weight gain , psychology , obesity , clinical psychology , body weight , overweight , psychiatry , communication
Summary Background Many parents engage in “weight talk” with their child, such as encouraging their child to lose weight or making comments about their own weight or others' weight. What parents say to their children about weight can affect children's well‐being, yet little is known about parental characteristics that may be at play regarding this common practice. Objectives This study examined the role of weight stigma in parental weight talk, and whether internalized weight bias mediates the relationship between parents' experiences of weight stigma and weight‐based conversations and comments. Methods A sample of 453 parents ( M age = 35.07) with children 2 to 17 years old ( M age = 8.76) completed surveys measuring parental experiences with weight stigma, weight bias internalization, and frequency of different types of parental weight talk. Mediations were tested via the PROCESS macro. Results Independent of controls (parent BMI, child BMI percentile, parent and child sex, parent and child age, race, income, and education), experienced weight stigma was indirectly associated with greater frequency of weight‐based conversations ( β = .08) and comments about oneself ( β = .08) and others ( β = .04) via parents' internalized weight bias. Conclusions These findings offer novel insights for understanding parental weight talk and can inform pediatric providers working with families on weight‐related issues.