Project Description
Overall, my research aims to advance our understanding of the ecological (and particularly familial) factors shaping health behaviors and weight trajectories of children and adolescents, identify strategies to prevent or reduce childhood obesity and promote lifelong healthy habits, and leverage technology to improve obesity-related measurement and treatment.
My main research project, funded by Michael Smith Health Research BC, aims to examine and promote positive parenting practices, with the ultimate goal of creating a familial environment that supports the development of healthy eating patterns and outdoor active play among toddlers and preschoolers. It includes 3 components:
a) A Daily Diary evaluation of within- and between-parent variations in parenting practices related to healthy habits among 2-5-year-olds
b) A Grounded Theory study to explain, from parents' perspectives, how the family shapes children’s health behaviors over time
c) A Randomized Controlled Trial testing a mobile-Health coparenting app to support children’s nutritious diet and outdoor active play
Research Classification
- Psychosocial, sociocultural and behavioral determinants of health
Research Interests
- Parenting practices and styles
- Childhood obesity
- Health behavior change
- Intervention design, implementation, adherence, effectiveness
- mHealth apps / interventions
- Quantitative Methods
- Statistical analyses
Research Methodology
- Quantitative methodology
- Statistics