Factors Associated With Parents' Intention to Follow Pediatric Recommendations for Their Child's Weight Loss

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to improve our understanding of the factors related to parents' intention to make weight-reducing lifestyle changes for their children. Previous research has examined parental perception of weight and adoption of weight loss behaviors, but many determinants remain unknown, including possible psychological and motivational factors that may facilitate self-efficacy and parents' intention to make weight-reducing lifestyle changes for their children. This study was a cross-sectional survey of 100 parents of obese children 6-12 years old attending primary care clinic in an urban academic practice. Parents completed the Family Demographics Questionnaire, the Weight Efficacy Lifestyle Questionnaire (Clark et al., 1991) and the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) (Radloff, 1977). Parents' height and weight were measured to calculate BMI. Logistic regression analyses of intention to follow provider advice included predictors of parents' self-efficacy for maintaining their child's diet, parents' self-perception of weight and controlling variables of child gender, child age, parents' BMI, ethnicity, and income. Parents' self-efficacy was found to be a significant predictor of parents' intention to follow the provider's recommendations; parents with higher self-efficacy scores were more likely to show intention to follow provider's recommendations (OR = 1.05, p < .001). Parents' level of depressive symptoms was a significant predictor of parents' self-efficacy; as level of depressive symptoms increased, parents' self-efficacy decreased. Depressive symptoms, together with legal guardian status and child's age predicted 16% of the total variance of parents' self-efficacy (B = -17.98, p < .01). The association of parents' self-perception of weight and intention did not achieve statistical significance; however, parents who perceived their provider to be overweight were less likely to intend to follow the provider's instructions (OR = 0.29, p < .03). Parents reporting a child with co-morbid health problems were less likely to show intention to follow weight loss recommendations in every analysis. These study results have implications for the training needs of pediatric providers to enable more effective interventions and improve overall outcome for the obese child, as well as implications for public health programs incorporating family participation into healthy lifestyle interventions for children.