Abstract:
Childhood is a period of rapid development with high demand for energy and nutrients. Those with fussy eating habits often refuse to eat general family foods and may compromise their nutritional needs. Mealtimes may also be stressful for families as separate meals often need to be prepared. Behaviour analytic treatments are well established in treatment approaches for those with more severe feeding concerns, such as food selectivity or total food refusal. However, few studies have been conducted with children with milder feeding concerns, such as those with fussy eating habits and parents are infrequently involved in the study process. This study utilised a single-subject experimental design to investigate whether commonly recommended procedures, such as repeated exposure and modelling, when applied systematically were effective in increasing target food acceptance. An individualised function based treatment was introduced if insufficient progress was observed. The results suggest that repeated exposure and modelling were insufficiently effective in increasing consumption across all children, as sufficient progress was only observed with one child for two of three food groups. However, the use of a function based treatment was effective for increasing consumption for all three children. Caregivers were involved in all aspects of the study from developing the treatment procedure to implementing treatment over the long-term. Evaluation of caregiver stress indicated there to be a reduction in reported stress post-intervention. Limitations and future implications are discussed.
