The Picky Eating Questionnaire and Child-reported Food Preference Questionnaire: Pilot validation in Australian-Indian mothers and children 7-12 years old

Limited literature has examined parents’ perceptions of children's pickiness in relation to all the five core food groups (vegetables, legumes/beans; fruits; dairy and alternatives; meat and alternatives; cereals), which is representative of a nutritionally balanced diet and critical for optimal growth and development in children. This study aimed to develop and validate two questionnaires in Australian-Indian mothers and children 7–12 years (N = 482). The core food Picky Eating Questionnaire (PEQ), completed by mothers, identified maternal perceptions of their child's pickiness. The Child-reported Food Preference Questionnaire (C-FPQ) studied children's self-reported food preferences. The questionnaires comprised specific food items commonly available in Australia across the five core food groups (PEQ, N = 32; C-FPQ, N = 33) and discretionary foods (C-FPQ, N = 11). Exploratory Factor Analysis identified the initial factor structure, and Confirmatory Factor Analysis provided construct validity. The PEQ observed five constructs, and C-FPQ observed three constructs for food items perceived as picky/non-preferred-green leafy vegetables; other vegetables, pulses/legumes; fruits; wholegrain/wholemeal cereals (PEQ only) and dairy (PEQ only). The PEQ and C-FPQ observed four constructs for food items perceived as not picky/preferred-green vegetables; other vegetables; fruits and nuts, and dairy. C-FPQ also observed savoury and sweet discretionary food constructs. All constructs observed acceptable reliability (test–retest, internal consistency) and validity (convergent, relative, predictive) testing. Mean scores indicated that mothers’ perceptions of pickiness were positively correlated with their children's report of non-preference. In conclusion, this study pilot validated two questionnaires to examine maternal perceptions of pickiness and children's self-reported food preferences among Australian-Indians, Australia's largest ethnic community.