Parent-Child Attitudes Toward Shared Mealtimes and Cooking

Abstract

ObjectiveTo evaluate the relationship between parents’ and their adolescent children’s attitudes toward the importance of meal-time socialization, enjoyment of family meals and learning new things while cooking.Design, Setting and ParticipantsUsing a cross-sectional design, parents of at least one child, aged 11 to 14 y (n=135, n=41 males, n=94 females), and their 11 to 14 year-old child (n=135, n=61 males, n=74 females) completed an on-line survey (Qualtrics). Parents and children were asked to respond, using a 7-point Likert scale, to the following valid and reliable statements: “Shared mealtimes are important for socializing;” “I enjoy eating together with family;” and “I like to learn new things in cooking.”Outcome Measures and AnalysisSpearman correlation coefficients were computed for the association between parents’ and children’s responses to each statement.ResultsParental attitude toward importance of shared meals as a way of socializing was positively correlated with adolescent attitude (parent=5.9±1.4, child =5.3±1.4, r=0.51, p<0.001), as was attitude toward enjoyment of family meals (parent=6.3±1.2, child=5.6±1.3, r=0.242, p<0.001) Parent and child responses to the statement, “I like to learn new things in cooking,” were not significantly correlated (parent=4.8±2.1, child=3.9±2.0, r=0.10 p=0.239).Conclusions and ImplicationsParent-adolescent dyads have similar attitudes toward enjoyment of family meals and mealtimes as an avenue for socializing. Parents and their adolescent children have discordant attitudes toward learning new things in cooking, suggesting an opportunity for food-based nutrition education programs to harmonize parent-child dyad experiences in cooking.FundingNone. ObjectiveTo evaluate the relationship between parents’ and their adolescent children’s attitudes toward the importance of meal-time socialization, enjoyment of family meals and learning new things while cooking. To evaluate the relationship between parents’ and their adolescent children’s attitudes toward the importance of meal-time socialization, enjoyment of family meals and learning new things while cooking. Design, Setting and ParticipantsUsing a cross-sectional design, parents of at least one child, aged 11 to 14 y (n=135, n=41 males, n=94 females), and their 11 to 14 year-old child (n=135, n=61 males, n=74 females) completed an on-line survey (Qualtrics). Parents and children were asked to respond, using a 7-point Likert scale, to the following valid and reliable statements: “Shared mealtimes are important for socializing;” “I enjoy eating together with family;” and “I like to learn new things in cooking.” Using a cross-sectional design, parents of at least one child, aged 11 to 14 y (n=135, n=41 males, n=94 females), and their 11 to 14 year-old child (n=135, n=61 males, n=74 females) completed an on-line survey (Qualtrics). Parents and children were asked to respond, using a 7-point Likert scale, to the following valid and reliable statements: “Shared mealtimes are important for socializing;” “I enjoy eating together with family;” and “I like to learn new things in cooking.” Outcome Measures and AnalysisSpearman correlation coefficients were computed for the association between parents’ and children’s responses to each statement. Spearman correlation coefficients were computed for the association between parents’ and children’s responses to each statement. ResultsParental attitude toward importance of shared meals as a way of socializing was positively correlated with adolescent attitude (parent=5.9±1.4, child =5.3±1.4, r=0.51, p<0.001), as was attitude toward enjoyment of family meals (parent=6.3±1.2, child=5.6±1.3, r=0.242, p<0.001) Parent and child responses to the statement, “I like to learn new things in cooking,” were not significantly correlated (parent=4.8±2.1, child=3.9±2.0, r=0.10 p=0.239). Parental attitude toward importance of shared meals as a way of socializing was positively correlated with adolescent attitude (parent=5.9±1.4, child =5.3±1.4, r=0.51, p<0.001), as was attitude toward enjoyment of family meals (parent=6.3±1.2, child=5.6±1.3, r=0.242, p<0.001) Parent and child responses to the statement, “I like to learn new things in cooking,” were not significantly correlated (parent=4.8±2.1, child=3.9±2.0, r=0.10 p=0.239). Conclusions and ImplicationsParent-adolescent dyads have similar attitudes toward enjoyment of family meals and mealtimes as an avenue for socializing. Parents and their adolescent children have discordant attitudes toward learning new things in cooking, suggesting an opportunity for food-based nutrition education programs to harmonize parent-child dyad experiences in cooking. Parent-adolescent dyads have similar attitudes toward enjoyment of family meals and mealtimes as an avenue for socializing. Parents and their adolescent children have discordant attitudes toward learning new things in cooking, suggesting an opportunity for food-based nutrition education programs to harmonize parent-child dyad experiences in cooking.