Objective: To determine the impact of preschool teacher food-related attitudes and behaviors on child food behaviors. Design: A twelve-week intervention and observational study with teachers completing questionnaires before and after the intervention. Setting: Head Start classrooms throughout Virginia. Participants: 177 preschool Head Start teachers and 1534 children. Intervention(s): Food Friends, a twelve-week social marketing campaign, was conducted by Head Start teachers during the Spring 2007, introducing children to novel foods with food puppets, nutrition-related activities and novel food tasting opportunities. Hypotheses related to the impact of preschool teachers' food-related attitudes and behaviors on children's food behaviors were tested, and changes in teacher and child food behaviors were measured. Main Outcome Measures: Teacher food-related attitudes and behaviors were measured/quantified. Child food behaviors were measured and compared to teacher attitudes and behaviors. Analysis: Descriptive, correlational and t-test statistics were conducted. Results: Teachers' and children's acceptance of novel foods improved after the Food Friends program, however, no direct correlations were found between teacher food-related attitudes and behaviors and child food behaviors. Conclusions and Implications: Preschool teacher attitudes and behaviors may not significantly impact child food-related behaviors. More research is needed to determine effective ways of encouraging positive child food behaviors. / Master of Science

Cette thèse vise à apporter des éléments de compréhension sociologique des particularités alimentaires des enfants présentant des troubles autistiques. Ce sujet est encore peu étudié dans la littérature, alors même que les particularités alimentaires et les comportements problématiques à table associés aux troubles autistiques ont des conséquences sur la santé et la vie sociale de l’enfant ainsi que sur celles de l’entourage familial. À travers l’analyse d’entretiens avec des experts et des parents, de questionnaires, d’observations ethnographiques et de témoignages publiés de parents, ce travail observe les tensions qui jalonnent la construction du répertoire alimentaire. Sur un fonds biologique et psychologique commun, les analyses montrent comment l’écart autistique à la norme donne à voir des identités alimentaires qui se construisent et se diversifient au fil de l’âge et au gré des contextes. La thèse fait alors apparaître que des phénomènes, souvent identifiés comme spécifiques à la socialisation alimentaire en population autistique, relèvent en partie de déformations de la construction de la néophobie alimentaire et de son processus, au point qu’il soit nécessaire de parler de néophobies alimentaires au pluriel. L’alimentation particulière des enfants permet de souligner la dimension éminemment sociale du processus d’individualisation alimentaire. L’analyse des pratiques alimentaires spécifiques éclaire enfin la redéfinition des rôles et donne à voir les ajustements sociaux ainsi que le travail domestique, parental et de care pour y faire face. De la sorte, les perturbations liées aux troubles autistiques sont l’occasion d’observer les processus de néophobie sous un angle nouveau et de mettre au jour les enjeux individuels, familiaux, sociétaux et sanitaires de la socialisation alimentaire chez l’enfant. / This thesis aims at bringing elements for a sociological understanding of autistic children’s eating particularities. The scientific literature remains limited on that subject even though eating particularities and problematic behaviours associated with autism spectrum disorders have consequences on the child’s health and social life, as well as on the family circle’s. Through the analysis of interviews with experts and parents, a quantitative survey, ethnographic observations and published testimonies, this research explores the strains of the building process of alimentary repertories. On a biological and psychological common basis, the autistic deviation from the standard reveals the construction and diversification of eating identities throughout aging and the different contexts in which children evolve. The dissertation shows that some phenomena, often identified as specific of the food socialization in autistic population, are partly due to distortions of the food neophobia construction and its process, so that it is necessary to talk about neophobias in the plural. The eating particularities emphasize the eminently social dimension of children’s eating individualization process. Furthermore their understanding highlights the redefinition of parents’ roles and the social adjustments implemented to cope with them, resulting in a combination of domestic, parental and care strategies. Thus, perturbations linked with autism disorders are the opportunity to study the neophobia process from a new angle and to uncover individual, familial, societal and health stakes implied in children’s food socialisation.

Three experiments were conducted with five species of tropical fish to investigate the phenomena of taste aversion and food neophobia. In addition, an experiment determined specifically if position in the tank could acquire conditioned aversive properties. In Experiment 1 , four habituated fish were fed novel meat-flavored pellets on the treatment day. Six were made ill within 30, 60, or 90 minutes (2 subjects each) by intragastric administration of syrup or Epicac. The following day all were fed familiar commercial pellets. On the second day after treatment, all were offered the meat-flavored pellets. Results showed longer latencies, more tasting, and decreased consumption of novel pellets. All measures differed significantly for the treatment subjects compared to their own baseline and controls. Experiment II demonstrated food neophobia in four in experienced fish. After habituation they were fed novel meat-flavored pellets but not made ill (day 0). On day 1 and 2 they received familiar diet and were made ill after the feeding on day 2. On day 3 they received familiar food again and no change in approach latency, testing response, or quantity consumed occurred. On day 4, they were offered the novel meat-flavored pellets which they refused. These results indicate that the fish associated the illness with the more "novel" food even though their familiar diet was temporally closer to the illness. In Experiment III five species of naive fish were habituated to 20-gallon tanks and made ill after eating in one end and not in the other. The same food was us ed in both ends. The "illness end" could have taken on discriminitive properties and food consumption there should have decreased, as opposed to the other "safe end". The results indicated that "place" did not acquire aversive discriminitive properties. Food consumption decreased in quantity, food approach latencies increased and length of tasting bouts increased in both ends. These experiments were the first to use these species of fish in this type of research. The results extend the phenomena of taste aversion and food neophobia. In addition, Experiment III systematically replicated the hypothesis of relevant relations between stimuli and showed that it is easier to learn certain consequences with certain cues than with others. In this case illness was quickly associated with taste but "place" was treated as irrelevant.

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Tendo como base a visão evolucionista e a abordagem terapêutica cognitivo-comportamental, o objetivo deste trabalho foi propor um protocolomodificado de tratamento para pessoas obesas com compulsão alimentar periódica.A idéia norteadora é que estratégias que foram úteis para a sobrevivência daespécie poderiam estar influenciando no ganho de peso. Entre estas estratégias,destacam-se: a tendência a consumir uma grande quantidade de alimentos, facilitando o consumo de alimentos hipercalóricos; e a neofobia alimentar, dificultando o consumo de frutas, legumes e verduras. Obedecendo à lógicaancestral herdada pela espécie, a primeira proporciona reservas para momentos deescassez de alimentos e a segunda implica em uma recusa em consumir alimentosdesconhecidos evitando que substâncias tóxicas sejam ingeridas. Ambos os fatores poderiam contribuir para a obesidade. Os tratamentos convencionais buscam controlar a ingestão calórica. O que aqui se propõe, além desse controle, é tentardiminuir o nível de neofobia alimentar. Com essa hipótese de trabalho espera-se aumentar o consumo de alimentos, principalmente os mais saudáveis e hipocalóricos, contribuindo para reduzir a ingestão de alimentos hipercalóricos. Otratamento incluiu técnicas de exposição, modelação e imitação adicionadas a umtratamento já utilizado para obesos com compulsão alimentar periódica. Foram criados dois grupos, o primeiro com 4 participantes funcionando como grupo decontrole, que recebeu um tratamento convencional de TCC; o outro, com 6 participantes aqui denominado grupo de intervenção, que recebeu o tratamento deTCC modificado. A pesquisa foi qualificada como quase-experimental. O resultadoobtido foi uma redução do índice de neofobia alimentar, do Índice de massa corporal, um aumento no consumo de alimentos saudáveis e a redução de gordurase açúcares no chamado grupo de intervenção. Embora tenha alcançado estes resultados, o tratamento ainda precisa ser reformulado e ampliado. / Based on the evolutionary vision and cognitive-behavioral therapy approach,the objective was to propose a modified protocol of treatment for overweight peoplewith binge eating. The guiding idea is that the strategies that were useful for thesurvival of the species could have contributed to weight gain. Among these strategiesare: the tendency to consume a large amount of food, facilitating the consumption ofcalorie foods, and food neophobia, making the consumption of fruits and vegetables.According to the logic inherited the ancestral species, the first provides reserves fortimes of food shortages and the second implies a refusal to consume food thatavoiding unknown toxic substances are ingested. Both factors could contribute toobesity. Conventional treatments seek to control caloric intake. What is proposedhere, and this control is to try to reduce the level of food neophobia. With this workinghypothesis is expected to increase food intake, especially low-calorie and healthierby helping to reduce the intake of calorie. Treatment included exposure techniques,modeling and imitation added to an already used to treat obese patients with bingeeating. We created two groups, the first with 4 participants working as a control groupwho received conventional treatment of TCC, the other with 6 participants here calledthe intervention group, who received the modified treatment of TCC. The researchwas described as a quasi-experimental. The result was a reduction in the rate of foodneophobia, the body mass index, an increased consumption of healthy foods andreduce fats and sugars called in the intervention group. Although it has achievedthese results, the treatment still needs to be reformed and expanded.

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Tendo como base a visão evolucionista e a abordagem terapêutica cognitivo-comportamental, o objetivo deste trabalho foi propor um protocolomodificado de tratamento para pessoas obesas com compulsão alimentar periódica.A idéia norteadora é que estratégias que foram úteis para a sobrevivência daespécie poderiam estar influenciando no ganho de peso. Entre estas estratégias,destacam-se: a tendência a consumir uma grande quantidade de alimentos, facilitando o consumo de alimentos hipercalóricos; e a neofobia alimentar, dificultando o consumo de frutas, legumes e verduras. Obedecendo à lógicaancestral herdada pela espécie, a primeira proporciona reservas para momentos deescassez de alimentos e a segunda implica em uma recusa em consumir alimentosdesconhecidos evitando que substâncias tóxicas sejam ingeridas. Ambos os fatores poderiam contribuir para a obesidade. Os tratamentos convencionais buscam controlar a ingestão calórica. O que aqui se propõe, além desse controle, é tentardiminuir o nível de neofobia alimentar. Com essa hipótese de trabalho espera-se aumentar o consumo de alimentos, principalmente os mais saudáveis e hipocalóricos, contribuindo para reduzir a ingestão de alimentos hipercalóricos. Otratamento incluiu técnicas de exposição, modelação e imitação adicionadas a umtratamento já utilizado para obesos com compulsão alimentar periódica. Foram criados dois grupos, o primeiro com 4 participantes funcionando como grupo decontrole, que recebeu um tratamento convencional de TCC; o outro, com 6 participantes aqui denominado grupo de intervenção, que recebeu o tratamento deTCC modificado. A pesquisa foi qualificada como quase-experimental. O resultadoobtido foi uma redução do índice de neofobia alimentar, do Índice de massa corporal, um aumento no consumo de alimentos saudáveis e a redução de gordurase açúcares no chamado grupo de intervenção. Embora tenha alcançado estes resultados, o tratamento ainda precisa ser reformulado e ampliado. / Based on the evolutionary vision and cognitive-behavioral therapy approach,the objective was to propose a modified protocol of treatment for overweight peoplewith binge eating. The guiding idea is that the strategies that were useful for thesurvival of the species could have contributed to weight gain. Among these strategiesare: the tendency to consume a large amount of food, facilitating the consumption ofcalorie foods, and food neophobia, making the consumption of fruits and vegetables.According to the logic inherited the ancestral species, the first provides reserves fortimes of food shortages and the second implies a refusal to consume food thatavoiding unknown toxic substances are ingested. Both factors could contribute toobesity. Conventional treatments seek to control caloric intake. What is proposedhere, and this control is to try to reduce the level of food neophobia. With this workinghypothesis is expected to increase food intake, especially low-calorie and healthierby helping to reduce the intake of calorie. Treatment included exposure techniques,modeling and imitation added to an already used to treat obese patients with bingeeating. We created two groups, the first with 4 participants working as a control groupwho received conventional treatment of TCC, the other with 6 participants here calledthe intervention group, who received the modified treatment of TCC. The researchwas described as a quasi-experimental. The result was a reduction in the rate of foodneophobia, the body mass index, an increased consumption of healthy foods andreduce fats and sugars called in the intervention group. Although it has achievedthese results, the treatment still needs to be reformed and expanded.

No description available.

La néophobie alimentaire est une réticence à goûter et/ou le rejet des aliments inconnus. Elle a une incidence négative sur la variété du répertoire alimentaire de l’enfant et sur le climat familial lors des repas. L’objectif de notre étude, qui se situe dans une perspective développementale, est de répondre à trois questions concernant cette conduite qui demeurent insuffisamment traitées dans la littérature scientifique : 1/ la néophobie alimentaire émerge-t-elle brusquement à 2 ans ; 2/ si oui, quels sont les processus développementaux à l’origine de cette évolution ? ; 3/ quels liens la néophobie alimentaire entretient-elle avec la sélectivité alimentaire (réticence à goûter des aliments familiers) et l’alimentation difficile (rejet d’aliments inconnus et familiers, assorti de fortes préférences alimentaires) ?Via l’utilisation de questionnaires, nous avons évalué : 1/ la néophobie alimentaire en termes de prévalence et d’intensité ; 2/ les compétences développementales susceptibles d’expliquer son évolution dans les sphères motrice, praxique, linguistique et psycho-affective ; ces compétences ont été sélectionnées sur la base d’arguments temporel (évolution synchrone) et fonctionnel (liens théorique et psychologique) ; 3/ les conduites avec lesquelles elle est fréquemment confondue, à savoir la sélectivité alimentaire et l’alimentation difficile. Notre échantillon principal s’est trouvé composé de 432 sujets âgés de 3 à 60 mois. Nos résultats ont indiqué que la néophobie alimentaire constituait une période normale du développement de l’enfant. La prévalence de la néophobie alimentaire était de 57 % et associée à une intensitée modérée entre 3 et 6 mois ; elle augmentait de manière importante en termes de prévalence et d’intensité entre 19 et 36 mois, concernant 90 % des enfants à cet âge, puis elle se stabilisait jusqu’à 60 mois. Suivant cette évolution, nous avons proposé un modèle développemental de la néophobie alimentaire comprenant deux phases : 1/ une néophobie primaire commune aux nourrissons et aux animaux, liée à la perception de la nouveauté d’une texture ou d’une flaveur et sous-tendue par des processus de pensée intuitifs ; 2/ une néophobie secondaire, liée aux acquisitions réalisées par les enfants aux alentours de 2 ans, reposant largement sur l’aspect visuel des aliments et impliquant des traitements cognitifs plus élaborés. Nous n’avons pas identifié les processus développementaux à l’origine de son évolution entre 19 et 36 mois. Plusieurs explications méthodologiques et théoriques ont été envisagées pour expliquer cette absence de résultat telles que l’existence d’une phase intermédiaire dans l’acquisition des compétences ou l’implication d’autres mécanismes psychologiques ou neurobiologiques non mesurés dans cette recherche. De plus, nous avons constaté une intrication des processus développementaux mesurés aux alentours de 2 ans. Tous les progrès réalisés par l’enfant sur une courte période semblent converger dans une même direction, celle de l’autonomie : une autonomie à la fois motrice, avec l’acquisition de la marche et de la capacité à se nourrir seul, et une autonomie psychique, avec l’acquisition de la conscience de soi et l’entrée en phase d’opposition. Dans ce cadre, le développement du langage permettrait à l’enfant d’exprimer son individualité à travers l’affirmation de ses goûts et de ses besoins. La capacité à exprimer des demandes verbales et l’acquisition de la conscience de soi ont d’ailleurs été les compétences approchant le plus des critères de validation d’hypothèse. De ce fait, nous pouvons nous demander si l’augmentation de la néophobie alimentaire aux alentours de 2 ans vise à protéger l’enfant d’un éventuel empoisonnement à un moment où il devient de plus en plus autonome et/ou si elle reflète simplement des tentatives d’individuation. / Food neophobia is a reluctance to taste and/or the rejection of unknown foods. It has a negative impact on the diversity of the child's food repertoire and on the family dynamic during meals. The objective of our study, within a developmental perspective, is to answer three questions that remain insufficiently addressed in the scientific literature concerning this behavior: 1/ does food neophobia suddenly emerge at 2 years old; 2/ if so, what are the developmental processes involved in this evolution? ; 3/ how is food neophobia linked with pickiness (the reluctance to taste unfamiliar ingredients) and picky eating (the rejection of both unfamiliar and familiar foods, assorted with strong food preferences)?Through the use of questionnaires, we assessed: 1/ Food neophobia in terms of prevalence and intensity; 2/ Some developmental skills that are likely to explain its evolution in the motor, praxic, linguistic and psycho-affective spheres; these skills have been determined on the basis of temporal (synchronous evolution) and functional (theoretical and psychological links) arguments; 3/ The different behaviors it is frequently confused with: pickiness and picky eating. Our research sample was composed of 432 subjects aged between 3 and 60 months old.Our results showed that food neophobia was a normal period during childhood. The prevalence of food neophobia was 57% and was moderate intense between 3 and 6 months; it increased significantly in terms of prevalence and intensity between 19 and 36 months, with 90% of children affected by this condition at this age, then it stabilized until 60 months old. Based on this evolution, we have proposed a developmental model of food neophobia that can be divided in two phases: 1/ A primary neophobia common to infants and animals, that is mostly related to the perception of a new textures or flavors which relies on intuitive thinking processes; 2/ Secondary neophobia, that is based on children development around 2 years old, and that largely relies on food’s visual aspect and involves more elaborate cognitive processes.We did not identify the developmental processes that are responsible for its evolution between 19 and 36 months. Several methodological and theoretical explanations have been considered to justify this lack of results such as the existence of an intermediate phase during the skills acquisition period or the involvement of other psychological or neurobiological mechanisms that have not been measured for this study. In addition, we found an entanglement of developmental processes measured around 2 years. All the progress made by the child over a short period seem to converge in the same direction, that of autonomy: a motor autonomy, with the ability to walk and eat alone, and a psychic autonomy, with self-awareness and the opposition phase. In this context, language development would allow the child to express his/her individuality through the assertion of his preferences and needs. Furthermore, the ability to express verbal demands and the acquisition of self-awareness have been the closest things to our hypothesis validation criteria. As a result, we can ask whether the increase in food neophobia around 2 years is aimed at protecting the child from possible poisoning at a time when he is becoming more and more autonomous and/or if he simply reflects individuation attempts.

Personality, or behavioural differences among individuals, which are stable both in time and across contexts, is a highly popular topic. Currently there has been an increase of interest in the relationship between personality and repeatability, which is a methodical approach developed to measure the stability of interindividual differences in time. The aim of this thesis is to evaluate the personality of rats according to behavioural patterns exhibited under widely used testing procedures in new environment (open field test, hole board test) and to compare, how behavioural traits in these tests mutually correlate and change over time. Each test trial was repeated eight times with different intervals (24 hours, 6 days, 4 weeks). The results suggest that most of the recorded behavioural variability can be explained with three principal axes. The first one is associated with loco-exploratory activity of the subject. The elements of behaviour associated with this axis are the most repeatable. The second axis is mostly associated with time the animal spent in the central part of the arena and the third axis represents the interest in holes in hole board test. These two axes are less repeatable. A significant effect of the identity of the animal was found in all behavioural traits, associated with these...

No description available.

Si le rôle de la gustation sur le développement des préférences alimentaires a été étudié par le passé, il n’en ait pas de même du rôle de l’olfaction. Les objectifs de ce travail de thèse étaient d’étudier les réponses olfactives des nourrissons, leur dynamique au cours des deux premières années de vie, ainsi que leurs relations avec les expositions aromatiques précoces, l’appréciation alimentaire et le comportement néophobique des nourrissons. Ce travail, s’inscrivant dans le cadre de l’étude longitudinale OPALINE (Observatoire des Préférences ALImentaire du Nourrisson et de l’Enfant), a permis d’évaluer les réponses olfactives envers des odeurs alimentaires agréables, comme la vanille, et désagréables, comme le poisson, chez les nourrissons de 8, 12 et 22 mois. Les résultats révèlent que, dès 8 mois, les nourrissons sont capables de discriminer les odeurs agréables des odeurs désagréables. Toutefois, si des réponses d’évitement envers certaines odeurs désagréables sont observées, aucune réponse d’attraction n’est décrite au cours des deux premières années de la vie. De plus, nos résultats mettent également en évidence une certaine plasticité des réponses olfactives. Seules les réponses à quelques odeurs alimentaires désagréables sont stables entre deux âges consécutifs suggérant que les réponses hédoniques négatives vis-à-vis d’odeurs alimentaires apparaitraient plus précocement que les réponses hédoniques positives.Concernant les effets des expositions aromatiques précoces, il apparaît que plus un nourrisson a été exposé, in utero ou durant l’allaitement, aux notes aromatiques désagréables de certains aliments, moins il aura de réponses d’évitement face aux odeurs de ces aliments à 8 mois, mais pas au-delà.Lors de la diversification alimentaire (8 mois), la composante olfactive ne semble pas avoir d’impact sur l’appréciation des aliments nouvellement introduits. En revanche, à 12 mois, la composante olfactive pourrait jouer un rôle de modulateur dans l’appréciation des aliments à flaveur prononcée. Ce rôle n’est plus observé à 22 mois. Nos résultats mettent également en évidence que la réactivité différentielle à différentes odeurs, et non à différentes saveurs, est liée au degré de néophobie du nourrisson, suggérant que seules les odeurs contribuent à la méfiance envers les aliments nouveaux au cours de la seconde année de vie. Ce travail met en avant que les expositions aromatiques précoces peuvent influencer les réponses olfactives au début de la diversification alimentaire, période favorable à l’acceptation des aliments. Autour de l’âge d’un an, quand le répertoire alimentaire des nourrissons s’élargit et intègre des aliments dits « adultes », l’odorat jouerait un rôle clé dans l’appréciation des aliments en agissant comme un système d’alarme protégeant le nourrisson des aliments potentiellement dangereux / The role of taste on food preferences has already been investigated, however, little is known about the role of olfaction. The main objectives of this work were to assess infants’ olfactory responses, their dynamic during the first two years of life, and also their links with early food exposures, food liking and infants’ food neophobia. This work was conducted within a longitudinal study named OPALINE (Observatory of food preferences in infants and children). Olfactory responses were assessed, in 8-, 12- and 22-month-old infants, towards pleasant odours, such as vanilla, and unpleasant odours, such as fish. The results reveal that, from 8 months, infants can discriminate pleasant and unpleasant odours. However, only avoidance responses are observed towards some unpleasant odours; no attraction responses are highlighted during the first two years of life. Our results also suggest a plasticity of olfactory responses. Only responses towards some unpleasant odours are stable between two consecutive ages, suggesting that negative hedonic responses towards food odours would appear earlier than positive ones. Concerning the effects of early food exposure, it appears that the more an infant has been exposed, in utero or during breastfeeding, to some unpleasant food odours, the least s/he exhibits avoidance responses towards these food odours at 8 months, but not beyond. When complementary feeding has begun (8 months), olfaction does not seem to impact new food liking. However, at 12 months, olfaction can play a role of modulator in liking of the foods with strong flavour. This role is not observed anymore at 22 months. Our results also highlight that differential olfactory responses, and not gustatory ones, are linked to infants’ food neophobia suggesting that only odours contribute to the suspicion towards unfamiliar foods during the second year of life. This work stresses that early sensory exposures influence responses towards unpleasant odours at the onset of complementary feeding, which is a favourable period to food acceptance. Then, olfaction can play a role in food liking by acting as an alarm system protecting the infants against potentially harmful food