Validity of the toddler feeding questionnaire for measuring parent authoritative and indulgent feeding practices which are associated with stress and health literacy among Latino parents of preschool children
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Abstract
<p class="first" id="P1">Understanding the contribution of parental feeding practices
to childhood obesity
among Latino children is a solution-oriented approach that can lead to interventions
supporting healthy childhood growth and lowering rates of obesity. The purpose of
this study was to confirm the reliability and validity of the Toddler Feeding Questionnaire
(TFQ) to measure parental feeding practices among a sample of Spanish-speaking parent-preschool
child pairs (n = 529), and to test the hypothesis that parent characteristics of body
mass index (BMI), stress, and health literacy are associated with more indulgent and
less authoritative feeding practices. Standardized parent-report questionnaires were
completed during baseline interviews in a randomized controlled trial of an obesity
prevention intervention. The TFQ includes subscales for indulgent practices (11 items),
authoritative practices (7 items), and environmental influences (6 items) with response
options scored on a 5-point Likert scale and averaged. Factor analysis confirmed a
three-factor structure. Internal consistency was good for indulgent (α = 0.66) and
authoritative (α = 0.65) practices but lower for environmental (α = 0.48). Spearman
correlation showed indulgent practices and environmental influences were associated
with unhealthy child diet patterns, whereas authoritative practices were associated
with a healthier child diet. Multivariate linear regression showed higher parent stress
was associated with higher indulgent and lower authoritative scores; higher parent
health literacy was positively associated with indulgent scores. These results indicate
the TFQ is a valid measure of authoritative and indulgent parent feeding practices
among Spanish-speaking parents of preschool-age children and that stress and health
literacy, potentially modifiable parent characteristics, could be targeted to support
healthy feeding practices.
</p>