Open AccessFamily mealtime behaviors in children who are tube fed and preparing to transition to oral eating: A comparison to other pediatric populations
Author(s) -
Andrea García,
Marshall T. Beauchamp,
Susana R. Patton,
Sarah Edwards,
Meredith L. Dreyer Gillette,
Ann M. Davis
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
journal of health psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.716
H-Index - 88
eISSN - 1461-7277
pISSN - 1359-1053
DOI - 10.1177/1359105320982034
Subject(s) - reinforcement , psychology , eating behavior , developmental psychology , clinical psychology , feeding behavior , medicine , obesity , social psychology
This study examined differences in observed mealtime behaviors between children preparing to transition to oral feeding and children with various other chronic illnesses using a standardized measure of mealtime beaviors. The parent-child mealtime relationship can become strained due to problematic mealtime behaviors that limit food intake, as well as inadvertent reinforcement of disruptive behavior by caregivers. Frequency/rate of behaviors were compared between children with tube feeding (CwTF) and from previous studies of children with chronic illnesses using the Dyadic Interactive Nomenclature for Eating (DINE). Parents of CwTF used more coaxing, physical prompts, and reinforcement during meals, while parents of children with chronic illnesses used more direct commands and engaged in more parent talk. Findings support differences in parent-child mealtime interactions and eating behaviors across pediatric illness subgroups.