ICook 4-H: Parenting Typology Reflected in Youth Created Cooking Videos

Abstract

Using a mixed-methods approach to assess differences in parenting typologies observed in youth-created cooking videos from the iCook 4-H project. The iCook program was a randomized, control-treatment, 5-state intervention designed for 9-10 year olds and their adult meal preparers. Through a series of eight sessions, participants learned to cook, eat, and play together. Participants used provided video cameras to create cooking videos reflecting what they learned in six sessions. After training was conducted and >80% inter-rater reliability achieved, videos (n=172) were narrated and coded using NVivo by teams of two independent researchers with a third resolving any differences. Code frequencies were analyzed for relationships by typology using ANOVA. Four typologies of parents were observed: Supportive, Negative, Laid-back, and Mixed. Parents with Negative and Supportive typologies had more affluent kitchen equipment whereas parents with Laid-back and Mixed typologies had less affluent kitchen equipment (p=0.014). Parents with Negative typologies had the least cluttered kitchen environments; those with Mixed typologies had the most cluttered environments (p< 0.000). Youth whose parents were Laid-back or Mixed typology asked for assistance more often than those with Supportive or Negative typology parents (p<0.000). Youth of parents with Supportive typology had the highest levels of cooking confidence whereas youth of parents with Laid-back typology had the lowest levels of cooking confidence (p=0.001). Cooking-related parenting typologies were uniquely identified in this research. Impact of differing parenting typology on youth health-related behavior warrants further investigation.