Diet plays an important role in healthy development in adolescence and later in life. We described quantitative and qualitative data regarding food and dietary behaviour in the 2023/24 and 2024/25 rounds of ‘Born in Bradford: Age of Wonder’, a longitudinal study of secondary school pupils in Years 8, 9 and 10 across Bradford district. Particular attention is given to fruit and vegetable intake, breakfast and fast-food consumption and consumption of energy and high-sugar drinks. 13,143 students aged 12–15 completed questions on food and dietary behaviour (median age 13.9 years; 36.9.% Pakistani heritage; 33.4% White British; 59.7% living in the most deprived quintile). Overall, 19.4% of participants ate two or more servings of fruit daily; 20.3% ate two or more servings of vegetables daily; breakfast was eaten every day by 38.9% of participants; 1.7% of respondents ate fast food every day; 9.7% of participants consumed sugary drinks every day and 6.1% consumed energy drinks every day. Notable sub-group differences were present, for example, female and older participants reported less frequent breakfast consumption compared to their male and younger counterparts, while Pakistani participants reported more daily consumption of fast foods compared to White British participants. Qualitative data suggest that adolescent diet is shaped by an interplay of peer norms, cultural food practices, parental influence and affordability.

Parental Influence on Adolescent Gambling: the Role of Communication, Rules, and Social Support.

In South Africa, oral diseases are a significant public health concern. The Western Cape has a high prevalence of dental caries, with rates increasing from 82% to 84% in 6-year-olds over a 13-year period. This study explored the experiences of oral hygienists, children and their parents to generate insights that can inform the design of a new approach to oral health promotion (OHP). This exploratory descriptive qualitative study was conducted within an interpretivist paradigm using semi-structured individual interviews with three groups of participants: oral hygienists, children aged 8-12 years and their parents. The study was conducted at the dental public health facilities in the Western Cape Metropole. The transcripts were thematically analysed using ATLAS.ti software and guided by the Ritchie and Spencer framework approach to thematic analysis. Seven main themes were identified: oral health promotion approaches and effectiveness, professional development, barriers and challenges, children and parents' oral health knowledge, attitudes and practices, parental influence and family dynamics, cultural and socio-economic considerations and engagement between oral hygienists, parents and children. Resource limitations within the public dental healthcare system had a negative effect on the hygienists' ability to deliver effective OHP services. Although oral hygienists employ diverse methods, including practical demonstrations and interactive techniques, current OHP strategies remain inadequate to address the high burden of dental caries. These findings support the development of an alternative approach to OHP in this setting.Contribution:The study contributes to understanding the role of family dynamics in reducing the burden of oral diseases among children in the Western Cape.

The present study examined how self-esteem, procrastination, authoritarian parenting influence student’s Academic Performance. Main purpose of this study was to assess how personal traits and familial factors relate to students’ academic outcomes. The sample included 110 participants who were university students aged between 18 and 25 years, selected through convenience sampling. Standardized self-report questionnaires, including – the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (Rosenberg, 1965) to assess self-esteem, the General Procrastination Scale (Lay, 1986) to measure procrastination tendencies, the Authoritarian Subscale of the Parental Authority Questionnaire (Buri, 1991) to assess Authoritarian parenting style, and the Academic Performance Scale (Birchmeier et al., n.d.) were used. Data was analyzed using the computer software application Jamovi version 2.7.12. The analysis of the study shows that there existed a positive correlation between self-esteem and academic performance whereas procrastination along with authoritarian parenting were negatively associated with the former. The results imply that self-esteem at a higher level is a support to the academic achievement, meanwhile, procrastination and authoritarian parenting, will drag the student's performance down.

This study investigates how attitudes and behaviours are transmitted across generations and social networks, focusing on the relative influence of parents, grandparents, and peers. Building on the influential work of Cavalli-Sforza and Feldman (1982), we aimed to disentangle vertical and horizontal pathways of cultural transmission and assess their contribution to the stability and variation of cultural traits in a contemporary population. We conducted a large-scale survey involving 1905 university students in Australia and 4000 of their parents, grandparents, and friends. Participants reported their attitudes and behaviours across domains such as religiosity, politics, environmentalism, health, and leisure. Responses were analysed using factor analysis, path modelling, correlational analysis, and simulations based on additive transmission models. Our results show that cultural resemblance is strongest for religiosity, political orientation, environmentalism, and health behaviours. These traits exhibited clear vertical transmission from parents to children, with additional indirect influence from grandparents. Peer similarity was also evident, suggesting horizontal transmission and/or peer selection. Traits such as media use, music, and reading habits showed weaker familial resemblance and appeared more influenced by non-familial or contextual factors. Simulations confirmed that cultural traits are more likely to be adopted when shared by both parents and peers, though for some traits (especially left-wing political views and non-religiosity) external influences predominated. The findings demonstrate that cultural transmission is domain-specific and shaped by both family structure and social networks. Vertical and horizontal pathways contribute jointly, but their strength varies by trait. These results underscore the importance of integrating biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors to understand the persistence and evolution of beliefs and behaviours over generations.

Hispanics have the highest disparities in education and economic outcomes. To better understand lagging education rates, social capital theory is used as a framework to explore the relationship between parental involvement, social initiative, and educational aspirations. Data were collected from the Youth and Family Project (West Texas) with 785 Hispanic adolescent participants. The method section includes a structural equation model to explore relationships. AMOS 29 is used to test indirect relationships as well as multigroup analysis. The findings demonstrate an indirect positive association between parental influence on academic aspirations through the social initiative for males and females, accounting for 22% and 24% of the variance, respectively. Parental peer influence was significantly related to male's and female's social initiative. Social initiative for males and females was significantly related to academic aspirations. The findings show how parental involvement and social initiative both influence academic aspirations of Hispanic adolescents through gendered pathways, inferring that the school experience is different depending on gender.

Background/Objectives: Childhood obesity remains a major public health issue, particularly in Mediterranean countries such as Greece. Although parental influences on children's weight have been extensively studied, fewer studies have jointly examined parental mental health, feeding practices, sociodemographic factors, and biological stress markers. This study aimed to investigate associations between psychological status, educational level, feeding behaviors, and children's Body Mass Index (BMI) in a Greek sample. A pilot assessment of salivary cortisol was included in evaluating its feasibility as an objective biomarker of parental stress. Subjects and Methods: A total of 103 parent-child dyads participated in this cross-sectional study. Children's BMI was classified using World Health Organization (WHO) growth standards. Parental stress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms were assessed using the Perceived Stress Scale-14 (PSS-14) and the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21) questionnaires. Feeding practices were evaluated with the Comprehensive Feeding Practices Questionnaire (CFPQ). Statistical analyses included Pearson correlations, independent samples t-tests, one-way ANOVA, Mann-Whitney U, and Kruskal-Wallis tests. A subsample provided saliva samples for cortisol analysis to assess feasibility and explore the potential associations with parental stress indicators. Results: Parental BMI showed a strong positive association with child BMI (p = 0.002). Higher parental anxiety (p = 0.002) and depression (p = 0.009) were also associated with increased child BMI. Restrictive (p < 0.001) and emotion-driven (p < 0.001) feeding practices were associated with higher child BMI, whereas monitoring (p = 0.013) and health-promoting feeding practices (p = 0.001) appeared protective. Lower parental education was related to a higher BMI in both parents (p = 0.001) and children (p = 0.002) and to more frequent use of restrictive feeding strategies (p = 0.001). WHO charts identified a greater proportion of children as overweight or obese compared with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) criteria. The analysis showed statistically significant differences between the two classification systems (χ2 (4) = 159.704, p < 0.001), indicating that BMI categorization varies considerably depending on the reference system used. No significant associations were observed with residential environment or salivary cortisol, likely due to the limited size of the pilot biomarker subsample. Conclusions: The findings highlight the combined effect of parental mental health status, educational level, and feeding practices on child BMI within the Greek context. The preliminary inclusion of a biological stress marker provides added value to the existing research in this area. These results underscore the importance of prevention strategies that promote parental psychological wellbeing and responsive feeding practices while addressing socioeconomic disparities to reduce the childhood obesity risk.

ABSTRACT In the context of education, parents serve not only as providers of physical needs but also as primary educators responsible for instilling religious and moral values ​​in their children. This study aims to determine the influence of parents in shaping the religious character of students at Baitul Huda Pucangro Elementary School, Gudo District, Jombang Regency. The research method used was quantitative, with data collection techniques through observation, interviews, documentation, and questionnaires distributed to 40 respondents, students in grades IV-VI. Data analysis used a statistically based product-moment correlation technique. The results showed that parents have a significant influence on the formation of students' religious character, with a correlation coefficient of 0.6008. Students who receive attention and guidance from their parents demonstrate better religious understanding, attitudes, and behavior compared to students who receive less such support. Keywords: Parents, Religious Character, Students

The Role of Parental Influences in Chinese Adolescents' Academic Achievement through Shaping Friendship Network Dynamics.

BackgroundThe rising prevalence of depression among children and adolescents has become a critical global public health challenge requiring urgent attention. Emerging evidence suggests that parental psychological control (PPC) may be a significant risk factor for the development of depression in adolescents. Nevertheless, the intricate mechanisms linking parental psychological control to adolescent depression remain largely unresolved. This study aims to explore the association between parental psychological control and depression using a large sample of adolescents, and to determine whether parental psychological control relates to adolescent depression through a sequential pathway involving smartphone addiction and compromised sleep quality. Furthermore, network analysis is employed to identify the core and bridging symptoms within the network of parental psychological control, smartphone addiction, sleep disturbances, and depression in adolescents, providing a basis for targeted interventions.MethodsA cross-sectional questionnaire study was administered to 4,416 adolescents (63.56% females; mean age of 16.24 ± 0.92 years) between September and November 2024. Participants completed a battery of standardized measures, including self-reported demographic questionnaires, the Parental Psychological Control Scale, the Short Version Smartphone Addiction Scale, the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, and the Patient Health Questionnaire 9-Item Scale. Data were analyzed using the SPSS 26.0 and R statistical software packages.ResultsOur study revealed a significant positive association between parental psychological control and adolescent depression. Parental psychological control significantly predicted both smartphone addiction and poor sleep quality in adolescents. Importantly, smartphone addiction and sleep quality served as a serial mediator in the relationship between parental psychological control and adolescent depression. Network analysis further revealed that three central symptoms—“Energy” (PHQ4), “Love withdrawal” (LW), and “Sleep” (PHQ3)—and two key bridge symptoms—“Smartphone addiction” (SASall) and “Daytime dysfunction” (DD)—emerged as critical connectors linking parental psychological control to depression in adolescents.ConclusionThese findings elucidate the mechanisms through which parental psychological control contributes to adolescent depression, yielding significant theoretical and practical implications for adolescent mental health preventive interventions. Specifically, interventions targeting maladaptive smartphone use and poor sleep hygiene, particularly those addressing intermediary symptoms such as daytime dysfunction, may effectively mitigate the risk of depression in adolescents under high parental psychological control.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12889-025-26049-x.

Obesity in childhood remains a critical public health issue, with emerging evidence highlighting developmental origins rooted in parental behaviours before conception. While diet and weight status of birthing parents are well-established predictors of offspring health, the role of preconception physical activity (PA) remains understudied. This scoping review synthesizes current evidence between preconception PA and its association with adverse birth outcomes, and downstream infant and child obesity outcomes, contextualizing findings within the broader parental lifestyle influence. A systematic literature search across ten databases identified 41 relevant studies, predominantly cohort designs, analyzing PA effects on birth weight, gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), excessive gestational weight gain (eGWG), and offspring adiposity. Findings revealed no consistent association between preconception PA and birth weight or preterm birth risk. However, studies suggest that preconception PA may lower the likelihood of GDM and eGWG, both of which are linked to increased obesity risk in offspring. A significant methodological limitation across studies was the widespread temporal discontinuity, with PA predominantly assessed through retrospective recall rather than objective measures. Additionally, inconsistencies in study design, PA intensity definitions, and confounding lifestyle factors limit definitive conclusions. While obesity in birthing parents and suboptimal feeding practices dominate current etiological models, the potential preventive role of preconception PA warrants further investigation. Future research should implement intervention designs incorporating objective PA measures (e.g., accelerometry, wearable sensors) within life-course frameworks. Methodologically rigorous studies are critical for disentangling PA-specific effects from confounding lifestyle factors to inform evidence-based guidelines for preconception care.

Worthy of thinness: Moral reasoning and bureaucratic care in a state-funded bariatric surgery committee.

Physical inactivity among children in Western countries, especially children from ethnic minority groups, is a global health concern. Schools provide an ideal setting to address children's physical activity needs, with teachers playing a major role. Therefore, the aim of this study was to explore teachers' perspectives on barriers and motivators to physical activity participation in children from ethnic minority groups and to determine through their suggestions, how schools can be better supported to provide a physical activity-enabling environment. A purposive sample of eight primary school teachers in the Northeast of England, United Kingdom, participated in semi-structured interviews conducted through a combination of face-to-face and virtual settings. Reflexive thematic analysis identified seven barriers and nine motivators to physical activity, distributed across different levels of the socio-ecological theory. At the intrapersonal level, motivators included fun and wellbeing, whereas barriers included behavioural issues, and increased screen time. The interpersonal level encompassed influences of friends, parents, and teachers. At the institutional level, in-school activities were identified as motivators. At the community level, environmental influence and perceptions of safety were identified as barriers. At the public policy level, government/local council and resources were identified as both barriers and motivators. Notably, the teachers' perspectives align with previous findings on barriers and motivators to physical activity among children from ethnic minority groups in the Northeast of England, while contributing to policy-level insights. These policy-level insights highlight the importance of staff training, government funding, and sports infrastructure improvements.

This study explores the career preferences and influencing factors among computer engineering students at Bulacan State University across various academic years. Utilizing a quantitative survey methodology with a sample of 128 students and graduates, the research identifies key determinants shaping students' career decisions, including job market prospects, personal interests, educational offerings, parental and peer influence, and societal factors. Findings reveal that software development, hardware engineering, data analysis, cybersecurity, and game development are the most preferred career paths, while a significant number of students remain uncertain or consider careers outside the field. The study underscores the necessity for holistic career guidance programs, experiential learning opportunities, mentorship, curriculum review, and continuous student support to enhance career readiness and satisfaction. Recommendations aim to foster informed decision-making, optimize career development strategies, and strengthen university-industry linkages to better align student aspirations with labor market demands.

This study investigates how attitudes and behaviours are transmitted across generations and social networks, focusing on the relative influence of parents, grandparents, and peers. Building on the influential work of Cavalli-Sforza and Feldman (1982), we aimed to disentangle vertical and horizontal pathways of cultural transmission and assess their contribution to the stability and variation of cultural traits in a contemporary population. We conducted a large-scale survey involving 1905 university students in Australia and 4000 of their parents, grandparents, and friends. Participants reported their attitudes and behaviours across domains such as religiosity, politics, environmentalism, health, and leisure. Responses were analysed using factor analysis, path modelling, correlational analysis, and simulations based on additive transmission models. Our results show that cultural resemblance is strongest for religiosity, political orientation, environmentalism, and health behaviours. These traits exhibited clear vertical transmission from parents to children, with additional indirect influence from grandparents. Peer similarity was also evident, suggesting horizontal transmission and/or peer selection. Traits such as media use, music, and reading habits showed weaker familial resemblance and appeared more influenced by non-familial or contextual factors. Simulations confirmed that cultural traits are more likely to be adopted when shared by both parents and peers, though for some traits (especially left-wing political views and non-religiosity) external influences predominated. The findings demonstrate that cultural transmission is domain-specific and shaped by both family structure and social networks. Vertical and horizontal pathways contribute jointly, but their strength varies by trait. These results underscore the importance of integrating biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors to understand the persistence and evolution of beliefs and behaviours over generations.

Familial determinants of bone health parameters- a dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and peripheral quantitative computed tomography (pQCT)-based parent and offspring study in rural Indian children.

Associations of self-control and dietary restraint with the home food environment during pregnancy and postpartum.

The General Certificate of Education (G.C.E) Advanced level (A/L) is the final stage of general education in Sri Lanka. Bio-systems Technology and Engineering Technology are the two subject streams offered under the section of Technology in schools. School census data revealed that student enrollment in Engineering Technology is comparatively higher than in the Bio-systems Technology stream in the Western province. The main objective of the research is to investigate the factors influencing students' decisions to choose between Engineering Technology and Bio-systems Technology streams at the G.C.E. A/L in the Western province of Sri Lanka and to provide suggestions to increase student enrollment in the Technology stream. The research was conducted as descriptive research with a quantitative approach. The sampling procedure was stratified random sampling, and the main data collection instrument was questionnaires. The data collected from 340 students were analyzed using IBM SPSS statistics software. The factors associated with student enrollment into the Technology stream were investigated related to academic performance, motivational factors, and external factors such as school environment, teachers’ support, parental influence, and peer influence in subject stream selection. Descriptive statistics, Chi-square tests, revealed that the factors associated with parental influence, peer pressure, teacher support, and school environment did not influence the student enrollment decision for both subject streams. However, it was identified that gender, academic performance in Ordinary Level (O/L) mathematics, and personal interest in career opportunities and hands-on learning as the primary influencing factors of subject stream choice. Based on these findings the study provides evidence-based recommendations such as conducting gender-focused campaigns, improving collaborations with Industry, organizing career awareness sessions, and investing in practical learning for educational authorities to enhance the attractiveness of the Technology stream.

Dental caries remains one of the most prevalent yet preventable chronic conditions affecting children in Bangladesh. Although parental influence is widely recognized as a key determinant of children’s oral hygiene behaviors, empirical evidence focusing on urban Bangladeshi populations remains limited. This study seeks to address this gap by examining the influence of parental knowledge on children’s oral hygiene practices in urban communities of Bangladesh. A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 368 parents or primary caregivers selected through simple random sampling from major urban areas of Bangladesh. Data were collected using a validated structured questionnaire that assessed parental oral health knowledge, demographic characteristics, and children’s oral hygiene practices. Statistical analyses, including analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Chi-square tests, were employed to examine associations between parental characteristics and children’s oral hygiene behaviors. The findings revealed that parental education level and age were significant predictors of children’s oral hygiene practices. Parents with higher educational attainment and those aged 26–35 years were more likely to engage in early preventive oral health behaviors, including cleaning infants’ gum pads, caring for the first erupted tooth, and supervising toothbrushing. No significant gender-based differences were observed in parental knowledge levels. Across all groups, dentists were identified as the most trusted and reliable source of oral health information. This study provides context-specific evidence highlighting the critical role of parental knowledge in shaping children’s oral hygiene practices in urban Bangladesh. The findings support the integration of parent-centered oral health education into national child health and preventive dentistry initiatives to reduce the burden of childhood dental caries and improve long-term oral health outcomes.

Parents play a key role in protecting adolescent girls from sexual risk behaviours. This study examined how parent‒child sexuality communication and parental monitoring influence adolescent girls’ sexual relationships and activities in Karonga District, Malawi. Using a mixed-method design, surveys of 166 in-school girls (aged 10–15) and their caregivers were analyzed using SPSS v20.0, while focus groups with 20 out-of-school girls and 11 key informant interviews provided qualitative insights thematically. The results revealed that stronger parent‒child sexual communication (β = −0.12, p = 0.008) and parental monitoring (β = −0.18, p < 0.001) were linked to reduced sexual relationships and activities among adolescent girls. Communication was also affected by the child’s age (β = 0.09, p = 0.007). The qualitative findings support these results, highlighting the importance of parental involvement. This study emphasizes the role of open communication and community awareness in helping early adolescent girls make informed decisions about their sexual health.