Investigation of Eating Behavior in Adolescents in Terms of Family Functionality

Abstract

Objectives: The aim of this study is to examine eating habits in adolescents in terms of family functionality. Methods: This study, which examines the eating habits of adolescents in terms of family functionality, is descriptive and relationship-seeking. The target population of this research consisted of 8,052 students who continued their education in the central district of the Turkish Giresun Province in the 2017-2018 academic year. The sample of the study was determined to be 385 to produce 95% reliability and 5% margin of error. In the research, a suitable non-random sampling method was used. An eating-attitude test, family assessment scale and Personal Information Form were used for data collection. In analyzing the data, frequencies and percentages were used to determine the socio-demographic characteristics of the students. The average of scores of the eating attitude test and family functionality was examined through one-way MANOVA analysis to see whether there is any difference according to the sociodemographic characteristics. The relationship of students' family functionality with eating attitudes was examined by simple linear regression analysis. Results: Of the students participating in the study (average age 16.03 years), 206 (53.5%) were boys and 179 (46.5%) were girls. According to the analysis results, family functionality was found to predict eating attitudes (p<0.001), but no significant difference was found between the variables of gender, eating behavior, and perceived parental attitudes, and eating behavior and family functionality. No significant difference was found between the variables of gender, eating behavior and perceived parental attitudes, and eating behavior and family functionality. Conclusion: This study found that there was a positive relationship between adolescents' family functionality scores and eating behavior scores, but there was no significant difference between adolescents' gender, eating behavior and perceived parental attitudes variables, and eating behavior and family functionality.