Editorial: Conceptualizing and measuring appetite self-regulation and its development in infancy and childhood

Effective self-regulation, including appetite self-regulation (ASR), is important for the healthy growth and development of children (1–3). One of the challenges facing researchers is identifying the theoretical basis for the measurement and conceptualization of ASR. To that end, parent report questionnaires and behavioral/observational measures have been developed and used to examine ASR and its development in childhood. These measures have typically been framed in terms of their relevance to outcomes such as weight gain and obesity rather than conceptually or theoretically.