Table 1.

Definitions and examples of feeding styles and food parenting practices, adapted from Vaughn et al. (2016).⁷

Construct		Definitions and Examples
POSITIVE FEEDING STYLES
Refer to child-centered, responsive feeding styles, in which parents provide a high degree of structure, guidance, respect for children’s autonomy over their eating, and promotion of independence in eating
Authoritative Style		High demandingness, high responsiveness; high degree of involvement, structure and control, high child autonomy support responsiveness * During early infancy (i.e., the first 4–6 months postpartum when the infant is exclusively mild-fed) infancy, a style high in responsiveness and low in demandingness is appropriate
POSITIVE FOOD PARENTING PRACTICES
Include a set of practices high in structure and autonomy support which have been shown to support children’s food acceptance, awareness of hunger and fullness cues (appetite regulation), nutrition knowledge, healthy food choices and diet quality
STRUCTURE	Monitoring and Engagement	Provides age-appropriate monitoring of the child’s eating and food purchasing behaviors; offers guided choices at meals and snacks; offers appropriate portion sizes; allows child to make contribute ideas for meals and snacks
	Rules and Limit Setting	Places reasonable limits on the child’s intake and purchase of unhealthy foods; conveys expectations regarding mealtimes and participation in family meals; limits frequent snacking
	Establishes Routines	Establishes feeding routines; provides developmentally-appropriate feeding environment; provides opportunities for regular family meals; offer meals and snacks at consistent times
	Provision of Healthy Foods	Introduces a variety of healthful foods to child; makes healthy foods available and accessible at meals and snacks
	Covert Control	Controls a child’s food intake in ways that are less obvious to the child (e.g., not purchasing unhealthy foods or avoiding unhealthy restaurants)
AUTONOMY SUPPORT	Responsiveness to Cues	Awareness and respect for child’s hunger and fullness cues; terminates feeding/no longer offers food in response to fullness cues; does not pressure child to eat; does not demand that children clean their plates
	Praise and Encouragement	Praises child’s efforts for trying new foods or eating specific foods; encourages children to try new foods, without coercion; encourages children to develop more autonomy over eating (meal preparation, food shopping), and applauds efforts
	Social Modeling	Uses own behavior, knowledge and values to influence child’s eating; provides opportunities for child to learn about healthy eating; involves child in food preparation, food preparation and food shopping; provides knowledge about nutrition and health; models a preference/liking for healthy foods
NEGATIVE FEEDING STYLES
Refer to parent-centered, coercive and unstructured feeding styles related to either a controlling or permissive general parenting style, in which parents place too many or too little demands on children’s self-regulation and behavior, and enforce too much or too little control over children’s eating in ways that undermine food acceptance and appetite regulation
aAuthoritarian		High demandingness, low responsiveness; high control, low support for child autonomy in eating
aPermissive/Indulgent		Low demandingness, high responsiveness; low control, high support for child autonomy in eating
aUninvolved		Low demandingness, low responsiveness; lack of support, structure and control
NEGATIVE FOOD PARENTING PRACTICES
Include a set of practices that are high in coercive control and low in structure which have been shown to undermine children’s autonomy over their eating, and pose risk for the development of problematic eating behaviors and poor diet quality
COERCIVE CONTROL	Overt Control	Controls the child’s intake in a way that is more obvious to the child (e.g., strict rules regarding what and how much the child should eat); controls the amount and types of foods the child is offered
	Restriction	Restricts the child’s access to or intake of certain foods, often energy-dense foods; keeps certain foods out of reach or hidden
	Intrusive Monitoring	Monitors the types and amounts of food that the child consumes in ways that correspond to overt control; keeps track of the child’s intake of certain foods (sweets, snacks, high-fat)
	Pressure	Pressures the child to consume more food and specific foods (e.g., vegetables); demands that the child clean his/her plate
	Emotional Feeding	Offers food in response to the child’s negative emotions or distress; uses food to soothe or combat boredom
	Instrumental Feeding	Uses food as a reward, or withholds food as a punishment; uses bribes and threats to influence the child’s eating
UNSTRUCTURED	Neglect	Abdicates responsibility in feeding; lacks involvement and oversight for children’s eating; unaware of what, how much or how often child is eating (low monitoring and engagement); limits availability of nutrient-dense foods; lacks consistency in meal and snack times and routines
	Indulgence	Allows child complete control over eating; inconsistent mealtimes, allows child to eat/snack frequently and at will; provides large/unlimited portion sizes; provides unlimited availability of low-nutrient dense foods and low availability of nutrient-dense foods; acts as a short-order cook; does not monitor child’s food purchases

Notes: Definitions and examples of feeding styles and food parenting practices were adapted from Vaughn et al. ⁷, and align with general parenting practices described by Maccoby and Martin ¹¹, and applied to the feeding domain by Hughes and colleagues ¹⁰. Within positive feeding styles and food parenting practices, structure aligns with demandingness, and autonomy support aligns with responsiveness. Within negative feeding styles and food parenting practices, coercive control aligns with high demandingness and low responsiveness. Unstructured practices are low in demandingness; neglect is also low in responsiveness, while indulgence is high in responsiveness.