Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 9, 2025

The Other End of the Leash: An Experimental Test to Analyze How Owners Interact with Their Pet Dogs
Published on: October 13, 2017
Household chaos, child temperament, and structure-related feeding practices in toddlerhood: A moderation analysis
Kathryn L Krupsky1, Bharathi J Zvara2, Amrik Singh Khalsa3
1Division of Epidemiology, College of Public Health, The Ohio State University, 336 Cunz Hall, 1841 Neil Ave, Columbus, OH 43210, USA.
Abstract:
Structure-related feeding practices may promote intuitive child eating behaviors and foster responsiveness to internal cues of hunger and satiety. Caregivers' ability to engage in structure-related feeding practices likely depends on a complex ecology of factors, including household- and child-characteristics. This study examined associations between household chaos and structure-related feeding practices, and the moderating effect of child temperament. Data were from 275 caregiver-toddler dyads from central Ohio. Child temperament was reported by caregivers when children were 18 months of age, whereas household chaos and structure-related feeding practices were reported by caregivers when children were 36 months of age. Multivariable linear regression models were constructed to assess the relationship between chaos and structure-related feeding practices. Interaction terms between household chaos and three dimensions of child temperament were tested to determine whether temperament moderated the relationship between chaos and structure-related feeding practices. Household chaos was not independently associated with structure-related feeding practices, but higher levels of child effortful control were associated with greater mealtime structure. There was a statistically significant interaction between household chaos and child temperamental surgency, such that greater levels of chaos were associated with less structured mealtimes, but only when children had low-surgency. Findings suggest household chaos and child temperament inform caregiver feeding practices, but the influence of chaos may depend on more proximal factors, like child temperament. Recommendations to improve caregiver-child feeding interactions should be sensitive to characteristics of the broader family home environment.
More Related Videos
07:56Assessing the Coherence of Parents' Short Narratives Regarding their Child Using the Five-Minute Speech Sample Procedure
Published on: September 19, 2019
08:22Measuring Cardiac Autonomic Nervous System ANS Activity in Toddlers - Resting and Developmental Challenges
Published on: February 25, 2016
Related Concept Videos
Parenting Styles
Authoritarian Parenting
This style is strict and controlling, with little room for open dialogue. Authoritarian parents demand obedience and often enforce rules with minimal warmth. Children raised this way may lack social skills and initiative, usually comparing themselves to others unfavorably.
Authoritative...
Socioemotional Development during Infancy
Primary Temperament Types
Theory of Romantic Attachment in Adulthood
Attachment
Naturalistic Observations
Adler's Individual Psychology