Research Article

Targeting Feeding and Eating Behaviors: Development of the Feeding Dynamic Intervention for Caregivers of 2- to 5-Year-Old Children

Table 1

Maternal feeding behaviors before and after the 90-minute class (Study 1).

ItemPreintervention mean (SD)Postintervention mean (SD) valueHedges’ g

I feed my child at regular times instead of waiting until he/she asks for food.3.86 (0.9)4.14 (0.6) 0.2630.36
I allow my child to eat as much as she/he wants to eat from what is offered.4.00 (1.0)3.86 (1.1)0.6350.13
I allow my child to stop eating when she/he seems full.4.29 (0.7)4.21 (0.6)0.7750.12
My child eats in front of the T.V. or computer.a1.86 (0.9)1.71 (0.9)0.5470.16
I use food as a reward.a,b3.46 (1.0)1.92 (1.0)0.0021.50
We have pleasant conversations during meals that include everyone.3.86 (0.9)3.82 (0.8)0.8930.05
I only prepare food for my child that she/he likes to eat.a,b3.21 (0.8)2.53 (0.4)0.0041.04
My child eats wherever she/he wants to eat in the house.a2.36 (1.0)1.93 (1.0)0.1110.42
We eat meals together as a family.3.86 (0.7)3.71 (0.7)0.5470.21
I allow my child to have drinks other than water between meals.a3.36 (1.0)3.21 (1.0)0.7100.15
I allow my child to have other food whenever she/he doesn’t like the meal.a,b3.07 (0.9)2.00 (0.6)0.0061.36
My child gets her/his own food when hungry.a2.38 (1.0)2.00 (0.7)0.2400.43
I serve meals with a variety of different foods.4.16 (0.6)4.21 (0.6)0.6720.08
I try to make my child eat everything on her/his plate.a,b3.43 (1.0)2.14 (1.1)0.0301.19
Caregiver Feeding Responsibility Scale (CFRS)
 Total score (from italicized items above)3.82 (0.52)3.98 (0.44)0.0990.32
Child Feeding Questionnaire subscales
 Restrictionb3.51 (0.7)3.25 (0.6)0.0000.39
 Pressure to Eat2.93 (1.0)2.26 (0.7)0.0110.76
 Monitoring4.11 (0.8)3.57 (0.8)0.0060.66
 Concern about child’s weight3.31 (1.4)2.89 (1.2)0.3320.31

Note. Italics indicate Caregiver Feeding Responsibility Scale (CFRS) items. CFRS item response scale: 1 = never, 2 = rarely, 3 = sometimes, 4 = often, 5 = always. Postsurvey was completed 4–6 weeks following intervention.
aThese items were reverse-scored before the total CFRS score was calculated. For these items, lower Time 2 scores are expected.
bDenoting statistical significance (Bonferroni adjustment; 0.05/19 = 0.00263).