The study “Parenting styles and eating disorder pathology” was conducted by R.S. Enten and M. Golan and published in 2009. The purpose of their study was to find out whether there is a relationship between parenting styles and symptoms of eating disorders in their offspring. The parenting styles they distinguished were permissive, authoritarian and authoritative, terms coined by Baumrind (1966). Parents with a permissive parenting style tend to have a laissez faire attitude, they do not set rules but give the child a lot of freedom and are responsive. In contrast to this, parents who have an authoritarian parenting style want their child to obey and are less responsive for the needs of the child. The authoritative parenting style is characterized by valuing both “autonomous self-will and disciplined conformity” (Baumrind, 1966, p. 891).That is, authoritative parents set clear rules and are responsive to the child at the same time. It is seen as the most adaptive parenting style as it was associated with “positive outcomes in child development across gender, ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds (Davis, as cited in Enten & Golan, 2009, p.784). The participants of the study at hand were recruited from an Isreali treatment center for eating disorders. Parents were asked to fill out the Parental Authority Questionnaire investigating if they belong to the authoritative, authoritarian or permissive parenting style. Their children had to fill out the Eating Disorder Inventory and the Eating Attitude Test. In addition it was recorded whether the patients recovered from their symptoms for at least one year. Enten and Golan (2009) found that high scores on the authoritative parenting style correlated with low scores on body dissatisfacti... ... middle of paper ... ...), 887-907. Blissett, J. J., Meyer, C. C., & Haycraft, E. E. (2011). The role of parenting in the relationship between childhood eating problems and broader behaviour problems. Child: Care, Health And Development, 37(5), 642-648. Davis, C. L., Delamater, A. M., Shaw, K. H., La Greca, A. M., Eidson, M. S., Perez-Rodriguez, J. E., & Nemery, R. (2001). Parenting styles, regimen adherence, and glycemic control in 4- to 10-year-old children with diabetes. Journal Of Pediatric Psychology, 26(2), 123-129. Enten, R. S., & Golan, M. (2009). Parenting styles and eating disorder pathology. Appetite, 52(3), 784-787. Haycraft, E., & Blissett, J. (2010). Eating disorder symptoms and parenting styles. Appetite, 54(1), 221-224. Lobera, I., Ríos, P., & Casals, O. (2011). Parenting styles and eating disorders. Journal Of Psychiatric And Mental Health Nursing, 18(8), 728-735.
The National Institute of Mental Health: Eating Disorders: Facts About Eating Disorders and the Search for Solutions. Pub No. 01-4901. Accessed Feb. 2002.
With all of these factors and reasons for childhood obesity, parenting styles significantly changing obesity is unlikely. In “Childhood Obesity May be Linked to Parenting Styles,” the assumption that obesity would be decreased if parents were less strict about children’s eating habits and less restricting is not effectively proven. If the study had looked at parenting styles along with socioeconomic status and the specific roles of parents, this could be relevant to the obesity rates in the Unites States if performed in the United States.
Steiger, Howard. (1996). Familial eating concerns and psychopathological traits. International Journal of Eating Disorders. 19, 147-157.
Kinzl, Johann F., et al. (1994). Family Background and Sexual Abuse Associated with Eating Disorders. The American Journal of Psychiatry, 151,
Miller, Charlotte. "Eating Disorders." Doctors, Patient Care, Health Education, Medical Research. N.p., Oct. 2013. Web. 26 Mar. 2014.
Parental practices and behavior play a crucial role in children’s eating habits as well as in children’s weight outcome. The type of parenting style, authoritative, authoritarian, and permissive, parents decide to implement with their children at home leads towards the type of eating habits children will construct. Authoritative parenting style has been linked towards children having a greater intake of healthier foods on a daily basis, such as having a higher consumption of breakfast, fruits, and vegetables. Permissive parenting style has been linked towards children having a greater intake of unhealthier foods on a daily basis, such as having a higher consumption of sweets. Three aspects towards the development of obesity among children have
Individuals are pieces of a whole, called the family. The family has an undeniable influential role on each of the members of the unit, and conversely the individuals’ influence on the family unit. With this undeniable understanding of the family, it is important to look at the relationship between those with eating disorders and birth order. Is there a correlation between birth order and the development of either anorexia nervosa or bulimia? However, birth order only scratches the surface of the relationship between eating disorders and the family unit. Looking past potential relationships between birth order and eating disorders, is there the possibility of a relationship between eating disorders and the family dynamic? Perhaps the dynamic of the shared relationship between family members, beyond sibling relationships, plays an important role in the development of either anorexia nervosa or bulimia.
There are many more reasons to developing an eating disorder other than the media. After looking at the affects of media and how researchers explore the concept of development: we will now focus on the other key opponents to the development. Ultimately, if a person’s life situation, environment, and/or genetics leave them open to an Eating ...
Natenshon, Abigail H. When Your Child Has an Eating Disorder. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Inc. Publishers, 1999. N. pag. Print.
Parenting styles have been widely defined by Baumrind into three categories, authoritative, authoritarian and permissive. Parenting styles can be defined as a pattern of attitudes in how parents choose to express and communicate with their children. These styles are categorized based on the level of nurturance, parental control and level of responsiveness (Dwairy, 2004). Authoritative style exhibits high levels of demand, responsiveness and nurturance; authoritarian style exhibits high levels of demand but low levels of responsiveness, permissive style exhibits low levels of demand but high in responsiveness and nurturance (Dwairy, 2004). These parenting styles have been proposed to have a significant impact on a child’s development as well as academic achievement and psychological well-being. Children reared by authoritative parents are stated to have the highest levels of academic achievement, self-esteem, emotional adjustment and well-being according to Baumrind’s category of styles (Dwairy, 2004). However, these three categories are based on Western samples and have been said to describe parenting styles mainly in the West and question its limitations in describing parenting across cultures, as each style’s defining patterns may have different meanings across cultures.
Shapiro, C. M. (2012). Eating disorders: Causes, diagnosis, and treatments [Ebrary version]. Retrieved from http://libproxy.utdallas.edu/login?url=http://site.ebrary.com/lib/utdallas/Doc?id=10683384&ppg=3
Smolak, Linda, Michael P. Levine, and Ruth Striegel-Moore. "Media as Context." The Developmental Psychopathology of Eating Disorders: Implications for Research, Prevention, and Treatment. Mahwah, NJ: L. Erlbaum Associates, 1996. 235-53. Print.
Minuchin suggested that overt families are not rigid with their children or with things that relate to eating habits. In contrast, families who are more focused on eating habits and have strict rules, they are more concerned and over-protective (Minuchin, 1978). Adolescents who live in enmeshed families may face some difficulties to develop a separate identity from their parents. They want to take control and have a sense of self-determinism, so they take control of something related to their bodies through excessive or inadequate eating habits (mental health help,
This problem has fueled debates and court cases. Most of the time parents of obese children are obese themselves, and if it is not a medical issue it could be a mental health problem that causes them to eat everything that they eat. “Defining childhood obesity as abuse would put a tremendous burden on obese children’s parents”. (Yam)
"Teenagers with Eating Disorders, Facts for Families."aacap.org. American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatr, 05/2. Web. 9 Apr 2012.