Parent Report of Mealtime Behavior and Parenting Stress in Young Children With Type 1 Diabetes and in Healthy Control Subjects
- Scott W. Powers, PHD123,
- Kelly C. Byars, PSY.D123,
- Monica J. Mitchell, PHD123,
- Susana R. Patton, PHD12,
- Debbie A. Standiford, RN14 and
- Lawrence M. Dolan, MD134
- 1Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio
- 2Division of Psychology, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, Ohio
- 3University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, Ohio
- 4Division of Endocrinology, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, Ohio
Abstract
OBJECTIVE—This study assessed parent report of mealtime behavior and parenting stress in preschoolers with type 1 diabetes. It was hypothesized that children with type 1 diabetes would be seen as exhibiting more mealtime behavior problems and that their parents would evidence greater parenting stress when compared with healthy subjects. It was also hypothesized that report of mealtime behavior problems would be positively correlated with parenting stress.
RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS—A total of 40 children (aged 1–6 years) with type 1 diabetes were recruited from a pediatric hospital. Another 40 children matched for age, sex, marital status, and socioeconomic status were used as control subjects. Reliable and valid parent report measures, such as the Behavioral Pediatrics Feeding Assessment Scale and the Parenting Stress Index, were used for data collection.
RESULTS—Parents of children with type 1 diabetes reported more behavioral feeding problems than parents of healthy control subjects. Additionally, parents of children with type 1 diabetes reported higher frequencies of parenting behaviors associated with poor nutritional intake and a greater number of parenting problems concerning mealtimes when compared with parents of healthy control subjects. Parents of children with type 1 diabetes also reported higher stress levels than parents of control subjects. A moderate relationship between mealtime behavior problems and general parenting stress was observed for families coping with type 1 diabetes.
CONCLUSIONS—Mealtime problems reported in preschool children with type 1 diabetes are appropriate targets for behavioral intervention. Behavioral observation techniques and training in child behavior management skills should be used in future research aimed at assessing and treating barriers to effective nutrition management in young children with type 1 diabetes.
- BPFAS, Behavioral Pediatrics Feeding Assessment Scale
- CCHMC, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center
- MANOVA, multivariate analysis of variance
- PDC, Pediatric Diabetes Center
- PSI, Parenting Stress Index
- SES, socioeconomic strata
Footnotes
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Address correspondence and reprint requests to Scott W. Powers, PhD, Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Division of Psychology, Sabin Education Center 4th Floor, ML:D-3015, 3333 Burnet Ave., Cincinnati, Ohio 45229-3039. E-mail: scottpowers{at}chmcc.org.
Received for publication 29 June 2001 and accepted in revised form 6 November 2001.
A table elsewhere in this issue shows conventional and Système International (SI) units and conversion factors for many substances.
