Gender differences in the relationship between impulsivity and disordered eating behaviors and attitudes

Objective: We investigated relationships among gender, impulsivity and disordered eating in healthy college students. Method: Participants (N = 1223) were healthy, undergraduate men (28.5%) and women (71.5%), who completed the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale — Version 11 (BIS-11) and a four-factor version of the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-16). Results: As predicted, mean scores on all four EAT-16 factors were significantly higher for women than for men. Attentional impulsivity was related to poorer self-perception of body shape, more dieting, and a greater preoccupation with food for the sample as a whole. Moreover, motor impulsivity was related to poorer self-perceptions of body shape and a greater preoccupation with food. However, no gender differences emerged in the relationship between impulsivity and disordered eating attitudes. Discussion: This study elucidates the role of impulsivity in disordered eating behaviors among non-clinical college students. For both women and men, attentional and motor impulsivity were related to disordered eating attitudes and behaviors. Overall, these findings suggest that different facets of impulsivity are related to disordered eating attitudes and behaviors in a non-clinical college population

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder symptomatology and pediatric obesity: Psychopathology or sleep deprivation?

The relationship between attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and obesity in children has received considerable attention in recent years. However, the literature currently overlooks the potential causal and maintaining role that sleep problems may play in this relationship. Using a biopsychosocial framework, this article highlights how sleep problems impact the biological, psychological, and social aspects of both ADHD symptomatology and obesity. An in-depth examination of this model illustrates the imperative need for future research and clinical practice to recognize and explore the role sleep has in the link between obesity and ADHD symptomatology

Tired, Hungry, and Grumpy: Understanding the Direct and Indirect Relationships among Child Temperament, Sleep Problems, Feeding Styles, and Weight Outcomes

Research indicates that temperament is related to later obesity risk in both childhood and adulthood (e.g., Anzman-Frasca et al., 2012; Darlington & Wright, 2006), but less research has examined the mechanisms underlying this relationship. It is likely that temperament influences factors that increase one’s risk for obesity, such as parental feeding practices and child sleep problems. As such, the primary aim of the present study was to provide rigorous concurrent and longitudinal examinations of temperament, feeding practices, sleep problems, and child zBMI in a sample of healthy preschool children. In addition, the moderating role of SES was examined. A secondary aim of this study was to conduct confirmatory factor analysis on two measures assessing feeding practices and childhood sleep problems. Preschoolers aged 3 to 5 (49.5% female, 75.7% European American) presenting to a pediatric dentistry office were recruited to participate in the study (N = 297). Measures of child temperament, sleep, and parental feeding practices were collected Time 1 (T1) and again six months later at Time 2 (T2) (N = 188). Moreover, child and parent demographics, as well as objective measurements of child height and weight were assessed at both time points. Robust maximum likelihood confirmatory factor analyses were conducted on the Parental Feeding Style Questionnaire (Wardle et al., 2002) and the Children’s Sleep Habits Questionnaire-Preschool Version (Goodlin-Jones et al., 2008). Results provided preliminary support for a five-factor solution for each measure. Next, path analyses were conducted with both concurrent and longitudinal data. Overall, results indicate that greater reactivity/negativity is associated with parental feeding styles (i.e., emotional feeding) and children’s sleep problems both concurrently and longitudinally. zBMI was not significantly predicted by temperament, sleep, or feeding styles, however, and SES did not moderate any of the paths. Results indicate the importance for obesity prevention and treatment efforts to include a focus on child temperament, sleep, and parental feeding practices. In addition to providing important treatment implications, results provide a variety of areas for future research to further examine how temperament, feeding, and sleep relate and increase risk for obesity. Adviser: Timothy D. Nelso

Gender differences in the relationship between impulsivity and disordered eating behaviors and attitudes

Objective: We investigated relationships among gender, impulsivity and disordered eating in healthy college students. Method: Participants (N = 1223) were healthy, undergraduate men (28.5%) and women (71.5%), who completed the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale — Version 11 (BIS-11) and a four-factor version of the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-16). Results: As predicted, mean scores on all four EAT-16 factors were significantly higher for women than for men. Attentional impulsivity was related to poorer self-perception of body shape, more dieting, and a greater preoccupation with food for the sample as a whole. Moreover, motor impulsivity was related to poorer self-perceptions of body shape and a greater preoccupation with food. However, no gender differences emerged in the relationship between impulsivity and disordered eating attitudes. Discussion: This study elucidates the role of impulsivity in disordered eating behaviors among non-clinical college students. For both women and men, attentional and motor impulsivity were related to disordered eating attitudes and behaviors. Overall, these findings suggest that different facets of impulsivity are related to disordered eating attitudes and behaviors in a non-clinical college population

Relationship of Obsessive-Compulsive Behaviors of Primary Caregivers with a History of Sexual Abuse and Perfectionism in their Sexually Abused Children

Childhood sexual abuse (CSA) is associated with many short- and long-term sequelae including obsessive-compulsive behaviors (OCB) and perfectionism. Research suggests that the expression of child perfectionism may be influenced by caregivers’ OCB and CSA history. Caregivers with a CSA history may engage in dysfunctional parenting styles associated with child perfectionism, while children of caregivers with OCB may exhibit increased perfectionism due to genetics and/or the internalization of their parents’ perfectionist tendencies. However, given the high prevalence of OCB among those with a CSA history, the relationships among caregivers’ expression of OCB, caregivers’ CSA history, and child perfectionism is unclear. Thus, the purpose of this study was to explore these relationships. Results indicated that, consistent with existing literature, caregivers with a CSA history had significantly greater OCB than caregivers without a CSA history. However, caregiver OCB was not associated with perfectionism in youth who experienced CSA. Alternatively, children whose caregivers had a history of CSA exhibited significantly greater perfectionism than children of caregivers without a CSA history. Moreover, regression analyses revealed that caregiver CSA history significantly contributed to a model predicting child perfectionism

Reconsidering the local after a transformative global experience : a comparison of two study abroad programs for preservice teachers

Denna jämförande studie analyserar två lärarstudenters erfarenheter av utlandsstudier - en fyra månader lång skolpraktik i Sverige och en treveckors interkulturell intensivkurs med skolobservationer i Frankrike. Trots att de skilde sig åt gällande längd och struktur, syftade bägge programmen till att utveckla lärarstudenternas förståelse av mångfald och pedagogik ur ett globalt perspektiv. Genom användning av bl.a. transformativ lärandeteori (Mezirow, 1991) utgick studien från följande frågor: (1) Vilka erfarenheter gällande lokal/global mångfald och pedagogik gör lärarstudenter i två skilda program som inbegriper utlandsstudier? (2) Vilka programinslag bidrar till transformativt lärande? Resultaten betonar vikten av relevanta och interaktiva uppgifter, verkliga erfarenheter och stödjandet av personlig utveckling så att studenter kan bli globalare i sitt tänkande.This comparative case study analyzes two study abroad experiences for preservice teachers—a 4-month student teaching placement in Sweden and a 3-week intensive intercultural course with school observations in France. Although they differed in duration and structure, both programs focused on developing preservice teachers’ understandings of diversity and pedagogy in a global context. Using transformative learning theory (Mezirow, 1991) research questions included (1) What are preservice teachers’ experiences in two different study abroad programs focused on local/global diversity and pedagogy? (2) According to participants, what programmatic elements contribute to transformative learning experiences in such programs? Results underscore the need for relevant and interactive assignments, hands-on experiences, and support for personal growth in programs that aim to help preservice teachers “go global.

Estimating Child Sleep From Parent Report of Time in Bed: Development and Evaluation of Adjustment Approaches

Objective To develop and evaluate adjustment factors to convert parent-reported time in bed to an estimate of child sleep time consistent with objective measurement. Methods A community sample of 217 children aged 4–9 years (mean age = 6.6 years) wore actigraph wristwatches to objectively measure sleep for 7 days while parents completed reports of child sleep each night. After examining the moderators of the discrepancy between parent reports and actigraphy, 3 adjustment factors were evaluated. Results Parent report of child sleep overestimated nightly sleep duration by ~24 min per night relative to actigraphy. Child age, gender, and sleep quality all had small or nonsignificant associations with correspondence between parent report and actigraph. Empirically derived adjustment factors significantly reduced the discrepancy between parent report and objective measurement. Conclusions Simple adjustment factors can enhance the correspondence and utility of parent reports of child sleep duration for clinical and research purposes