Psychological and social adjustment of obese children and their families.

The psychological and social adjustment of 30 obese children and their families was examined. Mothers completed the Child Behaviour Checklist and the Family Environment Scale; children completed the Self-Perception Profile for Children. The results consistently indicate that the obese children were less socially competent, had more behaviour problems, and had poorer self-perceptions than the non-obese normative samples. Families of obese children differed significantly from families in the non-distressed normative sample in that they interacted in a more negative way. The findings are discussed in terms of an 'at risk profile' and the implications for the behavioural treatment of obese children.