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Theoretical frameworks informing family-based child and adolescent obesity interventions: A qualitative
1Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen, Health Promotion Research, Niels Steensens Vej 8, 2820 Gentofte, Denmark; Lund University, Paradisgatan 2, 221 00 Lund, Sweden.
Insights
Family-based interventions for child and adolescent obesity are rising, but theoretical frameworks are inconsistently applied. Future interventions should focus on target age, objectives, and self-efficacy for better outcomes.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Behavioral Science
- Family Studies
Background:
- Child and adolescent obesity is a growing global concern with treatment challenges.
- Family systems offer a promising setting for behavior change interventions.
- Theoretical frameworks are underutilized in family-based obesity interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To perform a qualitative meta-synthesis of family-based interventions for child and adolescent obesity.
- To identify and analyze the theoretical frameworks used in these interventions.
- To understand the practical application of theory in intervention design.
Main Methods:
- A literature review was conducted from January to March 2016.
- 35 family-based interventions for child and adolescent obesity were selected.
- Interventions were analyzed for the explicit use of theoretical frameworks.
Main Results:
- Eleven interventions were classified as 'theory-inspired,' explicitly stating theoretical guidance.
- Social Cognitive Theory, Self-Efficacy, and Family Systems Theory were most common.
- 24 interventions were 'theory-related,' incorporating elements like self-monitoring and reinforcement.
Conclusions:
- Significant inconsistencies exist in family-based intervention designs, creating a gap between research and practice.
- Proposes three themes for future intervention design: target age, intervention objective, and self-efficacy/readiness for change.
- Emphasizes the need for solid, theory-based frameworks in designing effective interventions.
Background:
Child and adolescent obesity trends are rising throughout the world, revealing treatment difficulties and a lack of consensus about treatment. The family system is broadly viewed as a potential setting for facilitation of behaviour change. Therefore, family-based interventions have come into focus. However, the use of theoretical frameworks to strengthen these interventions is rare and very uneven.
Objective And Method:
To conduct a qualitative meta-synthesis of family-based interventions for child and adolescent obesity to identify the theoretical frameworks applied, thus understanding how theory is used in practice. A literature review was conducted between January and March 2016. A total of 35 family-based interventions were selected for analysis.
Results:
Eleven interventions explicitly stated that theory guided the development and were classified as theory-inspired. The social cognitive, self-efficacy and Family Systems Theory appeared most frequently. The remaining 24 were classified as theory-related as theoretical elements of self-monitoring; stimulus control, reinforcement and modelling were used.
Conclusion:
The designs of family-based interventions reveal numerous inconsistencies and a significant void between research results and health care practice. Based on the analysis, this article proposes three themes to be used as focus points when designing future interventions and when selecting theories for the development of solid, theory-based frameworks for application. The themes are: (1) age of target group, (2) intervention objective, and (3) self-efficacy and readiness for change.
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