Funded Projects

Childhood obesity continues to be a public health concern. One predictor of weight status is the relative reinforcing value (RRV) of food, or how rewarding one finds eating versus alternative activities. Promoting rewarding activities that could take the place of eating offers a novel approach to decreasing excess energy intake and obesity. No studies have examined effects of promoting alternatives to eating on the RRV of food among preschoolers. Filling this gap is important, as this period involves drastic transitions, including increased autonomy and food preference learning. Prevention scientists have leveraged the opportunity for change during early childhood by testing parenting interventions, affecting outcomes such as socioemotional adjustment. We aim to bring together the food reinforcement and parenting intervention literature by promoting positive, rewarding parent-child interactions as a novel alternative to decrease the RRV of food. Children may find different activities rewarding, so we aim to develop a toolkit of activities within which positive parenting can be embedded (e.g., reading, nature walk). Then we will randomize parents and their 5 year olds to the intervention or control group. The intervention group will practice positive parenting, with flexibility in selecting activities in which parent-child interactions are embedded. Controls will be given items similar to those provided to the intervention group (e.g., books) but no parenting intervention. We will monitor activity selection and test intervention effects on the RRV of food versus parent-child interaction in the context of each family’s preferred activity. We will also explore secondary outcomes: e.g., child self-regulation. This study will inform a future grant by allowing development and feasibility testing of the intervention and tests of initial efficacy. This work has the potential to promote healthier eating, weight, and socioemotional development in early childhood and beyond.