Table 1.
Questionnaire scales and items in the questionnaire
| Scale/item | Number of items | Cronbach’s alpha or Pearson correlation | Examples of items, answer categories and score range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Need | |||
| Perceived child weight | 2 | r = 0.84 | What do you think of your child’s weight at this moment? Compared to other children of his/her age, I find my child. Far too heavy (−2) far too light (2) (5 categories) |
| Perceived parent weight | 1 | – | What do you think of your own weight at this moment? Far too heavy (−2) far too light (2) (5 categories) |
| Health beliefs | |||
| Perceived susceptibility | 1 | – | How certain is it that your child will become overweight in the future, or remain overweight? Certainly not (−2)–certainly (2) (5 categories) |
| Concern about child weighta | 3 | α = 0.78 | How concerned are you about your child having to diet to maintain a desirable weight? Unconcerned (−2)–very concerned (2) (5 categories) |
| Belief behaviour causes overweight | 3 | α = 0.72 | What are the causes of overweight in children in your opinion? Eating a lot, little exercise, unhealthy eating. Certainly not (−2)–certainly (2) (5 categories) |
| Belief genetic factors cause overweight | 8 | α = 0.75 | Overweight is determined by heredity. The metabolism of a person is determined by heredity. The agility of a person is determined by heredity. Totally disagree (−2)–totally agree (2) (5 categories) |
| Please imagine that your child can be tested for genetic predisposition to overweight. For this test, a swab will be taken from the inside of your child’s cheek at the youth health care centre. If your child is more likely than others to get overweight, the child health care physician will discuss this with you. The questions below look at possible testing of this kind | |||
| Attitudes | |||
| Attitude towards genetic testing for overweight | 3 | α = 0.82 | I see myself as a good parent if I test my child for a genetic predisposition to overweight. Certainly not (−2)–certainly (2) (5 categories) |
| Anticipated regret | 1 | – | Will you regret not testing your child if your child becomes overweight later? Certainly not (−2)–certainly (2) (5 categories) |
| Intention | |||
| Intention about genetic testing | 1 | − | I would test my child for a genetic predisposition to overweight if a test became available. Certainly not (−2)–certainly (2) (5 categories) |
aSubscale of Child Feeding Questionnaire (CFQ) (Birch et al. 2001)