The authors propose that individual differences among children in the
controls of food intake can be viewed in terms of differences in balan
ce of power in feeding. They also argue that the individual difference
s in styles of intake control that emerge by adolescence and adulthood
, including chronic dieting, eating disorders, and out-of-control eati
ng, begin in the early balance of control in the feeding context. Limi
ted evidence suggests that the course of development of shared control
differs for intermeal interval, food selection, and meal size.