Do parents or siblings engage in more negative weight-based talk with children and what does it sound like? A mixed-methods study

•Mixed methods studies examining familial negative weight-based talk are limited.•Moms and older brothers had the highest prevalence of negative weight-based talk.•Having a younger brother was associated with less negative weight-based talk.•Mothers’ negative weight-based talk focused on child'...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Body image 2016-09, Vol.18, p.27-33
Main Authors: Berge, Jerica M., Hanson-Bradley, Carrie, Tate, Allan, Neumark-Sztainer, Dianne
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Body Image - psychology
Body Weight
Child
Children
Family Relations - psychology
Female
Humans
Male
Obesity
Parents
Parents - psychology
Poverty
Qualitative Research
Siblings
Siblings - psychology
Weight talk
Weight teasing
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Summary:•Mixed methods studies examining familial negative weight-based talk are limited.•Moms and older brothers had the highest prevalence of negative weight-based talk.•Having a younger brother was associated with less negative weight-based talk.•Mothers’ negative weight-based talk focused on child's weight and health concerns.•Siblings’ negative weight-based talk focused on child's appearance and used teasing. The current mixed-methods study examined the prevalence of negative weight-based talk across multiple family members (i.e., mother, father, older/younger brother, older/younger sister) and analyzed qualitative data to identify what negative weight-based talk sounds like in the home environment. Children (n=60; ages 9–12) and their families from low income and minority households participated in the study. Children reported the highest prevalence of negative weight-based talk from siblings. Among specific family members, children reported a higher prevalence of negative weight-based talk from mothers and older brothers. In households with younger brothers, children reported less negative weight-based talk compared to other household compositions. Both quantitative and qualitative results indicated that mothers’ negative weight-based talk focused on concerns about child health, whereas fathers’ and siblings’ negative weight-based talk focused on child appearance and included teasing. Results suggest that interventions targeting familial negative weight-based talk may need to be tailored to specific family members.
ISSN:1740-1445
1873-6807
DOI:10.1016/j.bodyim.2016.04.008