About the Lab
The Hughes Lab focuses on examining parental socialization of children’s eating behaviors. The work we do in the lab targets parent-child relations during mealtimes and their impact on the development of child eating behaviors and subsequent obesity. As part of this research focus, we examine general and appetite regulation and their influence on the development of various child eating behaviors.
Our lab's research views childhood obesity from an ecological perspective, combining both well-established theoretical perspectives from developmental psychology and current knowledge regarding child nutrition. These efforts are critical to the formulation of effective prevention approaches to obesity during childhood.
Our lab uses multiple methods to measure parental feeding and child eating behaviors. We use both parent-report of their feeding and their child’s eating behavior as well as direct observation of these constructs. Dr. Hughes and her team have worked with Head Start districts as well as other community partners in Houston, Texas.
Dr. Hughes has been the principal investigator on five large federally funded projects focusing on parenting/feeding and their implications for childhood obesity.
Primary Investigator
Dr. Hughes’ research interests: parental socialization of child eating behaviors, parent-child relations during mealtimes, feeding styles, feeding behaviors, child eating behaviors, appetite self-regulation, childhood obesity.
USDA/ARS Children's Nutrition Research Center
The Hughes Lab is part of the USDA/ARS Children's Nutrition Research Center which houses laboratories, state-of-the-art equipment, a greenhouse, observation labs, research volunteer accommodations, a metabolic kitchen, and an elite group of research scientists.
Projects
Learn about our projects focused on child eating behaviors and parental influences on this construct including:
- Nurturing Needs study
- Technology Effects on Child Health (TECH study)
- Cooking HEalthy and Facilitating Early childhood Development study (CHEF-ED study)
- Baylor EFNEP Study Texas (BEST study)
- Food For Thought study
- Strategies for Effective Eating Development
- Food, Feeding, and Your Family
- Feeding Styles and Child Eating Behaviors
Selected Publications
Hughes SO, Power TG, Beck AD, et al. Twelve-month efficacy of an obesity prevention program targeting Hispanic families with preschoolers from low-income backgrounds. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior. 2021;53(8):677-690.
Hughes SO, Power TG, Beck A, Betz D, Goodell LS, Hopwood V, Jaramillo JA, Lanigan J, Martinez AD, Micheli N, Olivera Y, Overath I, Parker L, Ramos G, Thompson YP, Johnson SL. Short-term effects of an obesity prevention program among low-income Hispanic families with preschoolers. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior. 2020;52(3):224-239.
Power TG, Johnson SL, Beck AD, Martinez AD, Hughes SO. The Food Parenting Inventory: Factor structure, reliability, and validity in a low-income, Latina sample. Appetite. 2019; 134:111-119.
Hughes SO, Power TG, Beck A, Betz D, Calodich S, Goodell LS, Hill LG, Hill R, Jaramillo JA, Johnson SL, Lanigan J, Lawrence A, Martinez AD, Nesbitt M, Overath I, Parker L, Ullrich-French S. Strategies for Effective Eating Development-SEEDS: Design of an obesity prevention program to promote healthy food preferences and eating self-regulation in children from low-income families. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior. 2016. 48(6):405-418.e1.
Johnson SL, Goodell LS, Williams K, Power TG, Hughes SO. Getting my child to eat the right amount. Mothers’ considerations when deciding how much food to offer their child at a meal. Appetite. 2015; 88:24-32.
Power TG, Baker SS, Barale KV, Aragon MC, Lanigan JD, Parker L, Silva Garcia K, Auld G, Micheli N, Hughes SO. Using mobile technology for family-based prevention in families with low incomes: Lessons from a randomized controlled trial of a childhood obesity prevention program. Prevention Science. 2024;25(2):369-379.
Hughes SO, Power TG, Baker SS, Barale KV, Aragon C, Lanigan JD, Parker L, Silva Garcia K, Auld G, Johnston CA, Micheli N. Short-term efficacy of a childhood obesity prevention program designed to pair feeding content with nutrition education. Childhood Obesity. 2022;19(4):239-248.
Aragón MC, Auld G, Baker SS, Barale KV, Garcia KS, Micheli N, Parker L, Lanigan JD, Power TG, Hughes SO. Implementation science strategies promote fidelity in the Food, Feeding, and Your Family study. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior. 2021;53(12):1028-1037.
Hughes SO, Power TG, Baker SS, Barale KV, Lanigan JD, Parker L, Silva Garcia K, Aragon MC, Johnston CA, Micheli N. Pairing feeding content with a nutrition education curriculum: A comparison of online and in-class delivery. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior. 2020;52(3):314-325.
Power TG, Beck A, Silva Garcia K, et al. Low-income, Latina mothers’ scaffolding of preschooler’s behavior in a stressful situation and children’s self-regulation: A longitudinal study. Parenting: Science and Practice. 2022;22(2):161-187.
Power TG, Beck AD, Fisher JO, Micheli N, O’Connor TM, Hughes SO. Observations of maternal feeding practices and styles and young children’s weight status: A longitudinal study of Hispanic mothers with low incomes. Childhood Obesity. 2021;17(1):16-25.
Hughes SO, Power TG, Fisher JO, O’Connor TM, Micheli, N, Papaioannou MA. Maternal feeding style and child weight status among Hispanic families with low-income levels: A longitudinal study of the direction of effects. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity. 2021;18(1):30.
Power TG, Hidalgo-Mendez J, Fisher JO, O’Connor TM, Micheli N, Hughes SO. Obesity risk in Hispanic children: Bidirectional associations between child eating behavior and child weight status over time. Eating Behaviors. 2020;36:101366.
Lab Members
View a listing of the Hughes Lab members and collaborators with links to their bios.
Questionnaires
View and download information about the Caregivers Feeding Styles Questionnaire and Food Parenting Inventory.
Hughes Lab
USDA/ARS Children’s Nutrition Research Center
Baylor College of Medicine
1100 Bates Avenue
Houston, TX 77030
Email: shughes@bcm.edu
Join Hughes Lab
Postdoctoral Research: Visit the Postdoctoral Fellowship in Children's Nutrition webpage to learn about upcoming center-supported postdoctoral training opportunities. There are rolling deadlines for application, based on funding availability.
Graduate Students: Dr. Hughes offers training opportunities to graduate students who are seeking research experience as partial completion of their degree requirements. She is also open to serving as a member on doctoral committees in a topic related to her research interests. Contact Dr. Hughes.
Staff: We are not currently recruiting, but please check the Baylor Careers website for current available positions.