Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the Child Feeding Questionnaire among Low-Income African-American Families of Preschool Children

This study examined the factor structure for three of the Child Feeding Questionnaire (CFQ) sub-scales, a widely used measure of parental feeding practices, among 296 low-income parents of African American preschool children. Confirmatory factor analysis showed an overall poor fit among CFQ sub-scales; Restriction, Pressure to Eat, and Concern about Child Weight, (chi (2), (df = 87=300.249, CFI=1.00, NNFI=1.07, RMSEA=.091). Additionally, Cronbach's Alpha coefficients for 2 of the three sub-scales were below acceptable recommendations (Restriction=0.69; Pressure to Eat=0.58). These results suggest further psychometric clarification is needed to understand commonly reported feeding practice constructs among low-income African American mothers of preschool aged children.