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International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity
Cook like a Boss Online: an adapted intervention during the COVID-19 pandemic that effectively improved children's perceived cooking competence, movement competence and wellbeing
Lynsey Hollywood1,
Johann Issartel2,
David Gaul3,
Amanda McCloat4,
Elaine Mooney4,
Clare Elizabeth Collins5,6 &
Fiona Lavelle7,8
International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity volume 19, Article number: 146 (2022) Cite this article
The COVID-19 pandemic has further exacerbated physical inactivity, poor dietary intake and reduced mental wellbeing, contributing factors to non-communicable diseases in children. Cooking interventions are proposed as having a positive influence on children's diet quality. Motor skills have been highlighted as essential for performance of cooking skills, and this movement may contribute to wellbeing. Additionally, perceived competence is a motivator for behaviour performance and thus important for understanding intervention effectiveness. Therefore, this research aimed to assess the effectiveness of an adapted virtual theory-based cooking intervention on perceived cooking competence, perceived movement competence and wellbeing.
The effective theory-driven and co-created 'Cook Like A Boss' was adapted to a virtual five day camp-styled intervention, with 248 children across the island of Ireland participating during the pandemic. Pre- and post-intervention assessments of perceived cooking competence, perceived movement competence and wellbeing using validated measurements were completed through online surveys. Bivariate Correlations, paired samples t-tests and Hierarchical multiple regression modelling was conducted using SPSS to understand the relationships between the variables and the effect of the intervention.
210 participants had matched survey data and were included in analysis. Significant positive correlations were shown between perceived cooking competence, perceived movement competence and wellbeing (P < 0.05). Children's perceived cooking competence (P < 0.001, medium to large effect size), perceived movement competence (P < 0.001, small to medium effect size) and wellbeing (P = 0.013, small effect size) all significantly increased from pre to post intervention. For the Hierarchical regression, the final model explained 57% of the total variance in participants' post-intervention perceived cooking competence. Each model explained a significant amount of variance (P < 0.05). Pre-intervention perceived cooking competence, wellbeing, age and perceived movement competence were significant predictors for post-intervention perceived cooking competence in the final model.
The 'Cook Like A Boss' Online intervention was an adapted virtual outreach intervention. It provides initial evidence for the associations between perceived cooking competence, perceived movement and wellbeing as well as being effective in their improvement. This research shows the potential for cooking to be used as a mechanism for targeting improvements in not only diet quality but also movement and wellbeing.
NCT05395234. Retrospectively registered on 26th May 2022.
Child health and the COVID-19 pandemic
The global prevalence of childhood obesity, a multifactorial chronic condition, is a major public health concern and can have a detrimental impact on a child's physical health and mental wellbeing [1, 2]. Alarmingly, this has paralled rises in other non-communicable diseases in children, such as cardiovascular diseases and diabetes [3, 4]. Some of the reported contributing factors, such as physical inactivity, poor dietary intake and reduced mental wellbeing, have been further exacerbated during the recent COVID-19 pandemic [5,6,7,8,9]. Furthermore, changes to individual's dietary intakes may have fluctuated during the pandemic, including increases in both saturated fat, and fruit and vegetable intakes [10]. In addition, more frequent home cooking behaviours, including an increase in child participation in cooking and baking activities were reported [10, 11]. This may be considered a positive, as the decline in cooking and food preparation skills has been attributed to the rise of obesity [12]. Prior to the pandemic, there has been a lack of child involvement in cooking activities in the home environment due to parental time pressures and safety concerns [13]. This missed opportunity may have had negative consequences as research shows that learning cooking skills at younger ages is associated with positive dietary outcomes in adulthood and that these skills are retained to adulthood [14, 15]. In addition, children's cooking interventions have the potential to influence their food related preferences, attitudes, enjoyment, behaviours and self-efficacy [16,17,18].
Motor skills underpinning cooking skills and movement and potential contribution to wellbeing
The importance of children's gross and fine motor skills to enable the performance of cooking skills has been previously highlighted [19]. For example, fine motor skills are required to chop ingredients and gross motor skills are needed for stirring [19]. These are also essential skills needed to take part in activities of daily living and physical activity [20, 21]. Additionally, children's perceived movement competence contributes to their physical self-efficacy and in turn, their physical activity levels [22]. Furthermore, movement and physical activity has been associated with positive mental wellbeing [23, 24]. More recently, cooking has been associated with positive wellbeing in adults and adolescents [25, 26], with the physical movements required to perform the cooking skills suggested as a possible mechanism for this improvement in wellbeing [27].
Cooking interventions and outcomes
Children's cooking interventions have been highlighted as potential positive mechanisms for influencing children's diet quality [16,17,18], with successful elements being considered as sessions led by a culinary professional [28, 29], a greater number of sessions [30], and more than one session a week [16, 17]. However, methodological issues remain [18]. Design weaknesses include a lack of underpinning theory, model and/or framework for their development, a lack of control groups and sample size calculations [16, 18]. Furthermore, there is limited use of validated measurement tools for the assessment of the intervention effectiveness. Perceived competence, an individual's self-efficacy for undertaking a specific task, is a greater motivator to perform a behaviour than actual competence [31], and an important element for assessing the effectiveness of interventions.
Aim and hypotheses
Therefore, this research aimed to assess the effectiveness of an adapted virtual theory-based cooking intervention (Cook Like A Boss Online) on perceived cooking competence, perceived movement competence and wellbeing, using validated measures. A secondary aim was to explore the relationships between these variables.
We hypothesised that there would be a general positive relationship between perceived cooking competence, perceived movement competence and wellbeing (investigated through pre-intervention variables) (H1). We expected that there would be a significant increase in perceived cooking competence, movement competence and wellbeing post intervention (H2). In addition, we hypothesised that demographic factors (age, gender, prior cooking experience) as well as both pre and post intervention perceived motor competence and wellbeing would predict post intervention perceived cooking competence.
Participants and ethical approval
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all aspects of this intervention were conducted online, and it was designed as an outreach/supportive programme for parents and children during a difficult time period. Parents of potential participants were recruited through researcher networks and social media channels. Upon contacting the research team, parents were provided with further information on the programme and the links to both the parent and child pre-intervention surveys (parental data not shown). At initiation of the parental survey, parents were presented with additional information on the research study and provided consent. Parents were made aware that their children were not obliged to take part and that they could withdraw their data or their children's data at any time point up to data analysis, without reason or consequence. Participants were eligible if they were aged between 9 and 12 years and had not progressed to second level school. The camp was provided free to all participants and parents were provided with a £/€20 voucher upon completion of all four surveys as a contribution towards the cost of ingredients, in line with the original camp where ingredients were provided. The research was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki, and as such, in light of the circumstances, it was decided that it was unethical to have a waitlist (delayed intervention) control group. As the intervention was designed to be conducted over a school holiday period (Easter holidays) and ran for a week, a delayed group would have to wait a number of months to take part. Due to the uncertainty of the pandemic situation and the need of parents for activities for children, all eligible participants up to the maximum capacity took part. Ethical approval was received from the Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences Research Ethics Committee, Queen's University Belfast (MHLS 21_24).
Intervention design, structure and content
The intervention was adapted from the original 'Cook Like A Boss' camp intervention [32], which was developed in line with the Cook-Ed model [33] and theoretically underpinned by Social Learning theory (SLT) and Experiential Learning Theory (ELT) [34, 35]. The camp was designed to introduce the children to a range of food and skills and to nurture an initial interest in cooking. The original age-appropriate co-created content was used for the intervention [19, 32] with minor adaptions. These included the removal of making pasta from scratch due to equipment concerns, reordering days (changing the order of the days from the order in the original camp), and chef suggestions around alternative household equipment/ingredients to use. The adaptions were conducted to promote and ensure inclusivity of the programme to as many participants, i.e., removal/alternative equipment suggestions. The chef who facilitated the 'Cook Like A Boss' camp recorded the video version of the camp. He had over 30 years' experience including running cooking classes for children. The adapted online version of the camp included five daily videos of the chef performing the recipes that were emailed to the participant's parents prior to the session. The video recipes could be completed at any time during the day that suited the family. The five daily videos and how they were adapted from the original programme are presented in Table 1. Additionally, as the camp was virtual, to generate some social connectedness for the participants that would have naturally occurred in the original camp, parents were encouraged to share progress pictures (different stages in the recipe preparation as well as end product pictures) on social media platforms, e.g. Twitter. This was to highlight to the children that there were many other children taking part in the camp. Parents were advised that they did not need to share identifiable pictures of their children, that it could be progress pictures of the food or the end product. Furthermore, a final collated video of pictures of participants taking part in camp that parents submitted to the research team for inclusion was shared solely among the participants at the end through the parental email. Due to the camp-styled format of the programme, e.g., five daily videos designed to viewed and recipes cooked on consecutive days, the programme ran over the school break in April 2021. The sample size was calculated in relation to perceived cooking competence as the primary outcome. A G*power a priori analysis with a significance level of 0.05 indicated that to detect a moderate effect size (0.25), a total sample of 175 participants was necessary [36].
Table 1 Camp format and adaptions from original 'Cook Like A Boss'
Data collection and intervention assessment
Before the intervention began all children completed the 'pre' survey via a link sent to the participants' parents. On the final day of camp, the link for the 'post' survey was sent along with the video and participants had a week to complete this survey. Parents were advised that the children should complete the survey individually, however, if they needed assistance with reading or using the technology, this was permitted. To ensure accurate assessment of the children, clarity of the language, question formatting and consideration of children's attention span are essential [37]. Therefore, validated measures for children were used, questions were presented in an engaging format and the survey was designed to have a 10–15 min duration. The surveys gathered data relating to the children's demographics, perceived cooking competence, perceived movement competence and wellbeing, the measures included are detailed in Sect. 2.3.1. Process evaluation assessments to understand intervention adherence and fidelity were additionally collected (data not presented here, will be published separately).
Survey measures
Perceived cooking competence
The validated measure of perceived cooking competence CooC11 [38], was completed by children. CooC11 was an 11-item measure used to assess children aged 8–12 years on their perceived competence of their cooking skills, including skills such as chopping, peeling, weighing ingredients and using an oven. Children were shown illustrations of characters and asked whether they do the skill, if they respond yes, they were then shown two illustrations one of a 'good' performance of a skill and one of a 'poor' performance. The child was then asked which image they are most like on a five-point Likert scale. The sequence of presentation of 'good' and 'poor' performance of a skill alternated, and scores were reverse coded where necessary so that a higher score indicated a higher perceived competence. The score for each skill was then summed to create a total cooking competence score, possible scores ranged from 0 to 55.
Perceived movement competence
The validated pictorial measure of perceived movement competence [39], was also completed by the participants. It was a 12-item scale (six locomotor skills and six object control skills). Specific movement skills within the scale have elements that would have similar movements within cooking skills. For example, throwing requires arm, wrist and finger movement and control, which could apply to a number of cooking skills such as mashing, spooning and cutting. Another example would include the hand eye coordination and the arm and wrist control required in rolling would be similar movement to inserting food into an oven or scraping down a bowl. Children were shown illustrations of characters performing a skill, with good and poor performance alternated for skills, and required to choose which picture was most like them. Within the chosen picture, children were then asked to further indicate their perceived competence. Scoring was as follows, in the 'good' performance option: 'really good at…' (Scored four) or 'pretty good at…' (Scored three) and for the 'poor' performance: 'sort of good at…' (Scored two) or 'not that good at…' (Scored one). Scores were reverse coded where necessary so that a higher score indicated a higher perceived competence and were summed to create a total perceived movement score, with possible ranges from 12 to 48.
Participants completed The Stirling Children's Well-being Scale [40], a positively worded scale measuring emotional and psychological well-being in children aged 8–15 years. The measure was a 12-item scale, with 15 items included in total in the formatting and 3 items were not included in the final score as per instructions. The 12-items cover the components of Positive Affect (optimism, relaxation and cheerfulness and satisfying interpersonal relationships) and Positive functioning (competence and clear thinking) and were classified as Positive Emotional State and Positive Outlook. Each item was scored 1 to 5, with possible ranges from 12 to 60.
Children also completed questions around their age and gender and their location (either Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland) was established at recruitment. Prior cooking experience was assessed with the proxy question 'Do you help your mum/dad/other adult making the dinner' [32, 41]. Children responded on a scale of 1–5, with 1 meaning 'Always' and 5 meaning 'Never,' scores were reverse coded for analysis so that a higher score indicated more frequent assisting.
All statistical analysis was conducted using IBM SPSS Version 26. Significance levels were set at 0.05. The demographics of the participants were summarised with descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation [SD]). Where necessary, prior to data analysis, items were reverse coded so that a higher score showed a more desirable or positive response. Additionally, where required, data was transformed using inverse transformation to ensure the data were normally distributed (for all measure data).
Bivariate correlations using Pearson's correlation coefficients were used to examine associations between 'pre' measures of perceived cooking competence, perceived movement competence and wellbeing, to evaluate the strength of the relationships between these variables. To measure the intervention's impact, we compared the mean scores of perceived cooking competence, perceived movement competence and wellbeing before and after the intervention using paired-sample t-tests. Effect size of any significant differences was assessed using Cohen's d, with the meaning of effect size being d (0.01) = very small, d (0.2) = small, d (0.5) = medium, d (0.8) = large, d (1.2) = very large, and d (2.0) = huge [42].
Hierarchical multiple regression modelling was used to determine how much of the variance in the dependent variable (post perceived cooking competence) was accounted for by the predictor variables (demographics and perceived movement competence and wellbeing) while controlling for pre-perceived cooking competence. For regression analyses multicollinearity and collinearity were assessed using multiple methods such as correlations between predictor variables being less than 0.7, cook's distance not exceeding 1, the standard residuals the minimum and maximum being between − 3 and 3 and the Variance Inflation Factor being below the suggested critical value of 10 [43]. In addition, all predictor variables should correlate with the outcome above 0.3. Furthermore, autocorrelation was assessed using the Durbin-Watson test, with a value of 2 indicating no autocorrelation.
248 participants fully completed the pre-survey. However, there was matched pre/post surveys for 210 participants that were included in the analysis. The difference is accounted for by different children in the same household completing the pre/post surveys and children retention. The baseline demographics of the participants are summarised in Table 2. The majority of participants were girls (75.7%) and from the Republic of Ireland (64.3%). There was an even spread of children across the different ages. A small minority of the sample reported cooking on a regular basis 'always or often' (12.7%).
Table 2 Sociodemographic characteristics of the 'Cook Like A Boss' participants
Associations between perceived cooking competence, perceived movement competence and wellbeing pre-intervention
A significant positive correlation was shown between perceived cooking competence and perceived movement competence (r = 0.30, P < 0.001), as well as with wellbeing (r = 0.16, P = 0.019). A significant positive correlation was found between perceived movement competence and wellbeing (r = 0.35, P < 0.001).
Intervention effect on outcome variables
Children's perceived cooking competence (P < 0.001), perceived movement competence (P < 0.001) and wellbeing (P = 0.013) all significantly increased from pre to post intervention (Table 3). A medium to large effect size was found for perceived cooking competence, a small to medium effect size was seen for perceived movement competence and a small effect size was found for wellbeing.
Table 3 Intervention effect on perceived cooking competence, perceived movement competence and wellbeing using paired samples t-tests
Predictors of post programme perceived cooking competence
Table 4 displays the results of a hierarchical multiple analysis in predicting post programme perceived cooking competence. No multicollinearity or collinearity were found. And the Durbin-Watson was deemed acceptable at 2.09, indicating no auto-correlation was detected. Three potential predictor variables, one demographic (gender), pre-intervention wellbeing and post-intervention perceived movement competence were removed from the model as they did not sufficiently correlate with the dependent variable. The baseline model controlled for the participants pre programme perceived cooking competence, a potential predictor for post programme perceived cooking competence. This variable accounted for 49% of the variance in post programme perceived cooking competence, with a significant independent contribution (P < 0.001). Due to the accumulative nature of the models, models 1 and 2 control for initial variables and model 3 tests the impact of perceived movement competence and wellbeing on post programme perceived cooking competence. Model 2 included the participants' age and prior cooking experience, these variables accounted for an additional 1% of the variance (P < 0.05). Model 3 included participants' pre perceived movement competence and post wellbeing and accounted for a further significant 7% of the variance (P < 0.001) being explained. Each model explained a significant amount of variance (P < 0.05), with the final model (3) explaining 57% of the total variance in participants post programme perceived cooking competence. The final significant predictors of post programme perceived cooking competence included: pre programme perceived cooking competence, post wellbeing, age and pre perceived movement competence.
Table 4 Results of Hierarchical multiple regression predicting post programme perceived cooking competence
'Cook Like A Boss' Online is an innovative and effective virtual cooking camp for children, that was implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic and adapted from a theory-based co-created in-person camp. It is the first children's culinary intervention to assess perceived cooking competence, perceived movement competence and wellbeing in one study and provides essential initial evidence of the associations between these variables.
'Cook Like A Boss' [32] was the first intervention guided by a cooking education model [33], that included co-creation with the children participating and was underpinned by Social Learning Theory and Experiential Learning Theory. This intervention was adapted to be delivered in a virtual format due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The adaption from an in-person format to virtual one, while the largest adaption, it has merit as video can be a useful tool for teaching cooking skills [44]. Additionally, before the pandemic there had been a reduction in children learning cooking skills in the home environment due to time pressures and fears [13], yet during the pandemic there was an increased willingness to involve children in cooking activities [11]. The programme provided a structured opportunity for parents to include children in cooking activities that were age-appropriate, as the recipes had been deconstructed to match their underlying age-related motor skills [19], helping to reduce parental fears around what age children should be performing certain skills, e.g. chopping with a knife. Furthermore, children, adolescents and parents prefer to receive lifestyle behaviour-change information via the internet through their devices, such as phones, computers and tablets in comparison to traditional in-person methods [45, 46]. In addition, e-health interventions have been shown to be an effective method for child health treatments [47]. All suggesting that an e-health approach was an optimal and valid adaption to the programme, albeit being a necessity during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The principles of ELT and SLT remained within the programme, gaining a hands-on experience to develop an initial interest and enable lifelong learning (ELT), mastery experiences and reducing individuals' stress reactions towards challenging situations (SLT). Similar to the original camp, children took part in mastery experiences, preparing recipes they had never been exposed to or cooked before repeatedly throughout the camp. However, notably to stay safe, children participated at home. While some children may have had siblings joining in the cooking activities, and while the research team attempted to generate a level of social connectedness through parental engagement on social media and sharing an end video of all children participating with them, this level of social connectedness was reduced in comparison to the original camp. This reduction in social models (some level provided through the virtual videos) and social persuasion, two key elements for increasing perceived competence according to SLT, may contribute towards a smaller effect size of the virtual 'Cook Like A Boss' camp in comparison to the original camp on perceived cooking competence [32]. This highlights a significant aspect for consideration for future e-health interventions, the role of 'social' (connectedness, peer modelling, mentor modelling). The current intervention is an example of optimised conditions, with a captive audience in want of virtual activities, and while a general lack of social interactions may have had some influence, it was not able to match the effect size of the in-person camp for improving perceived cooking competence. The original camp's process evaluations highlighted the importance of peers and facilitators to the children, while the virtual camp was able to improve perceived competence; a hybrid model is an approach that could be considered for future e-health interventions for children.
As perceived competence is a motivator for performing a behaviour [31], it is essential to explore the relationships between differing but related perceived competences. Fine motor skills (the use of small muscles) and gross motor skills (the use of larger muscles) are involved in movements that require the functioning of the extremities [48], and have been proposed as essential to understanding the performance of cooking skills and what cooking skills children should be able to perform at different ages [19]. Children with higher levels of perceived movement competence have also been shown to participate in a greater amount of physical activity [49]. With declining levels of physical activity among children [50], it is important to understand different methods that can be utilized to improve perceived movement competence. This study provided initial evidence of the positive associations between perceived cooking competence, perceived movement competence and wellbeing. It may also indicate that improving one of the variables may have a positive influence on the other and the regression analysis indicating that pre intervention perceived movement competence is a significant predictor for post perceived cooking competence. Physical activity is associated with positive mental health and wellbeing [23, 24, 51,52,53]. While cooking has been linked to wellbeing in adults and adolescents [25, 26], with a proposed mechanism for this link being the physical movement interacting with neurobiological pathways such as dopaminergic and serotonergic which then reduces distress [27]. This research highlights how increasing perceived competence in these areas may also have an impact on wellbeing. One experiential cooking intervention in children and adolescents in the USA found a modest yet significant increase in wellbeing using a validated measure after a six-week programme [54], a similar result to that was found in the current study. Differences in sample ages, location, mode of delivery with a similar result may indicate the importance of the actual experiential cooking aspects for wellbeing. Additionally, the small significant increase in wellbeing that occurred post programme occurred despite the highly stressful global pandemic that caused anxiety in children [7]. This initial evidence supports the need for further research into the use of cooking, in terms of both perceived competence and the tangible act of cooking, and wellbeing in children.
After taking part in the short duration virtual cooking camp, significant increases in perceived cooking competence, perceived movement competence and wellbeing were evidenced. As the intervention was camp-styled, e.g. designed for consecutive days, it influenced the short duration of the programme. However, future research should investigate whether a longer duration of cooking classes or the classes spaced apart or repeated participation could attain greater improvements in perceived competences and wellbeing. Furthermore, while this research highlighted the relationship of cooking with perceived movement competence, future studies should explore cooking as a tool for increasing actual motor competence in children, as research indicated children are not developing their fine motor skills at a normative rate [55]. As cooking is a life skill, it is routinely used in occupational therapy with patients following stroke or Traumatic Brain Injuries and people with disabilities to enhance their functional capacity [56,57,58], research should investigate whether it could be used as a beneficial tool in general populations to enhance their development. The use of technology to deliver the programme is intriguing, as technology has been implicated as a potential mechanism that is changing the trajectory of children's fine motor development [55, 59]. However, as technology is so ingrained in children's lives [60, 61], this concept of using technology to encourage an activity that could potentially improve children's fine motor skills could be a mechanism to integrate technology with fine motor promoting activities.
Finally, the hierarchical multiple regression indicated that initial perceived cooking competence explained the largest amount of variance in perceived competence after the programme. This highlights the need to further understand what influences children's primary perceived competence. For example, prior experience was not a significant predictor of perceived cooking competence at the end, however it may have a role in their beginning perceived competence. Additionally, parental influence on children is another aspect for consideration as seen in education where parental education can influence children's educational attainment [62], and their cooking confidence can influence a child's intake of ultra-processed foods [63]. By extension, it is plausible that parental cooking confidence could affect children's perceived cooking competence and warrants further research.
Perceived movement competence and wellbeing remained significant predictors and explained a significant variance for perceived cooking competence after the programme as well. This, along with the other findings, shows that these concepts are highly interrelated and further research is required to understand their associations. Additionally, age remained a significant predictor in the final model. While the recipes were deconstructed and mapped back to age-appropriate, cooking skills in line with Dean et al. [19] to ensure the content was achievable for all children, differences in actual motor coordination between the children at different ages [55] may have impacted the level at which the child could complete the skill. This in turn, may have then influenced their perceived cooking competence.
This research has shown that cooking is a complex activity that can have an impact on wider components than the traditional focus of improving diet quality and dietary intake. It has the potential to be a multi-focused solution for not only improving diet quality and perceived cooking competence, but movement and wellbeing as well.
Key strengths of the current study are the minor adaptions (albeit necessary due to the nature of the pandemic) to the content of an effective children's cooking programme. Additionally, a criticism of children's cooking interventions and wider nutrition interventions with children in general, is a lack of validated instruments for measuring outcomes [16, 64, 65]. This research uses validated measurement tools for all its outcomes, which is a significant strength. Furthermore, another weakness in research design in this area is a lack of power calculations [18]. This study was sufficiently powered. Additionally, this programme was designed as an outreach programme, to provide support and an activity for children during the COVID-19 pandemic.
While there are a number of strengths to this research, some limitations must be considered and in turn provide areas for improvement for future studies. While it was deemed unethical in light of the unprecedented situation, the main limitation to this this research was the lack of a control group. The online intervention was adapted from an effective programme assessed with a control group [32], however it would be beneficial to assess the findings using a control group. Additionally, while validated measures were used in this study, it is worth noting that the perceived movement measure was initially validated in younger ages, however it has since been widely used in age groups similar to the group in the current study. It has also been suggested that The Stirling Wellbeing measure is best utilized over a few weeks for assessment. However, it's temporal stability was assessed and shown to be stable over a one-week period [40], which would suggest changes found over a week are not due to unreliable measurement. A similar limitation found in this study as in the original camp intervention, is the gender imbalance. While this camp was also filled on a 'first come, first served' basis, with additional funding secured to increase capacity due to interest, the majority of participants were girls. This may be due to societal norms around cooking still being perceived as a woman's responsibility [66,67,68]. Future research could actively target boys for recruitment to cooking interventions, especially considering the fine motor skills required for cooking and boys underperforming in fine motor skills in comparison to girls at young ages [69].
The 'Cook Like A Boss' Online intervention was an adapted virtual outreach programme delivered during the COVID-19 pandemic. It was the first children's cooking intervention to assess children's perceived cooking competence, perceived movement competence and wellbeing, and highlight the associations between these variables as well as being effective in their improvement. While traditionally, cooking interventions target diet quality and dietary intake, this research shows the potential for cooking to be used as a mechanism for targeting improvements in wider aspects of lifestyle such as movement and wellbeing.
The datasets generated and/or analysed during the current study are not publicly available due to ethical approval procedures.
ELT:
Experiential Learning Theory
SLT:
Social Learning Theory
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Brennan SF, Lavelle F, Moore SE, Dean M, McKinley MC, McCole P, Hunter RF, Dunne L, O'Connell N, Cardwell CR, Elliott CT. Childhood involvement in family food preparation and shopping and attitudes towards food: baseline results from Project Daire. Proc Nutr Soc. 2020;79:OCE2.
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Azevedo LB, Stephenson J, Ells L, Adu-Ntiamoah S, DeSmet A, Giles EL, Haste A, O'Malley C, Jones D, Chai LK, Burrows T. The effectiveness of e‐health interventions for the treatment of overweight or obesity in children and adolescents: a systematic review and meta‐analysis. Obes Rev. 2022;23(2):e13373.
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Saxe-Custack A, LaChance J, Hanna-Attisha M, Dawson C. Flint Kids Cook: positive influence of a farmers' market cooking and nutrition programme on health-related quality of life of US children in a low-income, urban community. Public Health Nutr. 2021;24(6):1492–500.
Gaul D, Issartel J. Fine motor skill proficiency in typically developing children: on or off the maturation track? Hum Mov Sci. 2016;46:78–85.
Melton J. How do clients with learning disabilities evaluate their experience of cooking with the occupational therapist? Br J Occup Ther. 1998;61(3):106–10.
Yantz CL, Johnson-Greene D, Higginson C, Emmerson L. Functional cooking skills and neuropsychological functioning in patients with stroke: an ecological validity study. Neuropsychol Rehabil. 2010;20(5):725–38.
Fogel Y, Rosenblum S, Hirsh R, Chevignard M, Josman N. Daily performance of adolescents with executive function deficits: an empirical study using a complex-cooking task. Occup Ther Int. 2020. Doi:https://doi.org/10.1155/2020/3051809.
Coll CG. Continuity and change in child development. Child Dev. 2015;86(1):7–9.
Lauricella AR, Wartella E, Rideout VJ. Young children's screen time: the complex role of parent and child factors. J Appl Dev Psychol. 2015;36:11–7.
Vandewater EA, Rideout VJ, Wartella EA, Huang X, Lee JH, Shim MS. Digital childhood: electronic media and technology use among infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. Pediatrics. 2007;119(5):e1006–15.
Eccles JS. Influences of parents' education on their children's educational attainments: the role of parent and child perceptions. London Rev Educ. 2005;3(3):191–204.
Martins CA, Machado PP, da Costa Louzada ML, Levy RB, Monteiro CA. Parents' cooking skills confidence reduce children's consumption of ultra-processed foods. Appetite. 2020;144:104452.
Burrows TL, Martin RJ, Collins CE. A systematic review of the validity of dietary assessment methods in children when compared with the method of doubly labeled water. J Amer Diet Assoc. 2010;110(10):1501–10.
Burrows T, Golley RK, Khambalia A, McNaughton SA, Magarey A, Rosenkranz RR, Alllman-Farinelli M, Rangan AM, Truby H, Collins C. The quality of dietary intake methodology and reporting in child and adolescent obesity intervention trials: a systematic review. Obes Rev. 2012;13(12):1125–38.
Beagan B, Chapman GE, D'Sylva A, Bassett BR. It's just easier for me to do it': rationalizing the family division of foodwork. Sociology. 2008;42(4):653–71.
Mills S, White M, Wrieden W, Brown H, Stead M, Adams J. Home food preparation practices, experiences and perceptions: a qualitative interview study with photo-elicitation. PLoS ONE. 2017;12(8):e0182842.
Romero MY, Francis LA. Youth involvement in food preparation practices at home: a multi-method exploration of latinx youth experiences and perspectives. Appetite. 2020;144:104439.
Kokštejn J, Musálek M, Tufano JJ. Are sex differences in fundamental motor skills uniform throughout the entire preschool period? PLoS ONE. 2017;12(4):e0176556.
The authors are extremely grateful to the participants and their parents that took part in the research during an immensely stressful time and hope that it provided enjoyment and relief. The authors would like to thank Chef Stephen Jeffers and Katie Jeffers for delivering and recording the camp videos. Additionally, the authors would like to thank Lucy Patterson for her design work.
This research was funded by Research development funding from Ulster University and Queen's University Belfast. A National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia leadership Research Fellowship (APP2009340) supports CEC. The funders had no involvement in the design of the study and collection, analysis, and interpretation of data or writing the manuscript.
Department of Hospitality and Tourism Management, Ulster University Business School, Ulster University, Belfast, UK
Lynsey Hollywood
Multisensory Motor Learning Lab, School of Health and Human Performance, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland
Johann Issartel
Department of Business, Technological University Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
David Gaul
School of Home Economics, National Centre for Excellence for Home Economics, St. Angela's College Sligo, Sligo, Ireland
Amanda McCloat & Elaine Mooney
School of Health Sciences, College of Health, Medicine and Wellbeing, The University of Newcastle, 2308, Callaghan, NSW, Australia
Clare Elizabeth Collins
Hunter Medical Research Institute, 2305, New Lambton Heights, NSW, Australia
Institute for Global Food Security, School of Biological Sciences, Queen's University Belfast, 19 Chlorine Gardens, BT9 5DL, Belfast, UK
Fiona Lavelle
Department of Nutritional Sciences, School of Life Course & Population Sciences, King's College London, London, UK
Amanda McCloat
Elaine Mooney
Conceptualization: FL; Funding acquisition: FL and LH; methodology: FL, AMC, EM, JI, and CEC; Investigation: FL, LH, DG; Resources: JI, DG; Formal Analysis: FL; Writing – original draft: FL, LH; Writing – review & editing: JI, DG, AMC, EM, CEC. The author(s) read and approved the final manuscript.
Correspondence to Fiona Lavelle.
Ethical approval was received from the Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences Research Ethics Committee, Queen's University Belfast (MHLS 21_24). All parents provided it informed consent for the participants in this research.
TIDieR-Checklist-Word, Cook Like A Boss Online
Hollywood, L., Issartel, J., Gaul, D. et al. Cook like a Boss Online: an adapted intervention during the COVID-19 pandemic that effectively improved children's perceived cooking competence, movement competence and wellbeing. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act 19, 146 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12966-022-01378-x
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12966-022-01378-x
Perceived competence


text:
DockerCon 2021
Docker Security Roundup: News, Articles, Sessions
With the eyes of the security world converging on Black Hat USA next week, now is a good time to remember that building secure applications is paramount. In the latest chapter in Docker's security story, Docker CTO Justin Cormack last month provided an important update on...
Container Security, docker, DockerCon 2021, security
David Oro
DockerCon 2021: Women in Tech Panel
Go code, learn along the way and don't be afraid to make mistakes. That was the inspirational message from an impressive all-women group of panelists at this year's DockerCon Live 2021. The...
Hema Ganapathy
DockerCon Live 2021: A Look Back at What's New
Nearly 80,000 participants registered for DockerCon Live 2021! There were fantastic keynotes, compelling sessions, thousands of interactions and everything in-between that a developer and development...
Today Is The Day!
It's here! Ready or not, DockerCon — our free, one-day, all-digital event designed for developers by developers — has arrived. Registration is open until 9 a.m., so if you haven't already done...
William Quiviger
A Big Thank You to Our DockerCon Live 2021 Sponsors
With DockerCon just a day away, let's not forget to give a big THANK YOU to all our sponsors. As our ecosystem partners, they play a central role in our strategy to deliver the best developer...
Matt Carter
At Docker, we feel strongly about embracing diversity and we are committed to being proactive with respect to inclusion. As an example of our support for diversity, we are hosting the Community Rooms...
DockerCon Is Almost Here!
Can you feel it? DockerCon is just days away. There's still time to register before the one-day, free, virtual extravaganza takes place this Thursday, May 27. Demonstrations, product announcements,...
What Not to Miss at DockerCon 2021
You'll have no shortage of content to choose from at DockerCon 2021. The one-day virtual event on May 27 will offer a smorgasbord of demonstrations, product announcements, company updates and more...

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Get inspired every Friday by subscribing to Greenhouse's weekly newsletter. Each edition is curated to provide our readers with the best in recruiting know-how, top Talent tips and helpful hiring hints. Join the community to stay updated on the most important trends and get inspired by stories from leaders in the field.
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New Seabury in the town of Mashpee, is a 2,000-acre, self-contained resort on the waters of Nantucket Sound. New Seabury encompasses 13 "villages," among which are Maushop and The Mews.
Rent a June week including 6/29 - 7/6 & avoid paying new MA lodging tax!
Distance to beach: Short kayak ride to the Spit!
Book a summer week by May 1 and receive $100 off!
Great discount on last two weeks of August!
Owner will pay tax. Two kayaks provided.
Memorial Day Weekend Available 900.00.
See new May and June price reductions!!
Quaint Cottage w/ Attached Guesthouse-Walk to the Beach!
Only one week remaining. July 6 to July 13. Reduced to $3,500.
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Rent any week in June (including 6/29 - 7/6) to avoid paying the new MA lodging tax!


text:
Autism in the IDF: Meet the Soldiers of Intelligence Unit 9900
By The Israel Wireaccess_time2 weeks ago
Special intelligence Unit 9900 is dedicated to everything related to geography, including mapping, interpretation of aerial and satellite photographs and space research.
Within this unit there is a small unit of highly qualified soldiers, who have remarkable visual and analytic capabilities. They can detect even the smallest details, undetectable to most people.
The uniqueness of this elite group of intelligence soldiers in Unit 9900 lies in the fact that they are all diagnosed on the autism spectrum. We interviewed Col. J, the commander of Unit 9900, in order to learn more about this inspiring group of soldiers.
First time in history
"After many doubts and expectations the project came to light after almost a year of processing. There were many problems along the way. The actual process took about a year and I want to say that we started with the assumption that this could, should and would succeed," says Colonel J, confessing that the success of this project exceeded the optimistic expectations of its initiators. "The concerns were understandable, because I knew nothing about autism. The result was a task of trial and error. Everything we did was happening for the first time in the history of the IDF. We planned, worked and focused until we achieved success."
How does this group fit in with the other soldiers?
"They have excellent relations with the soldiers of the unit – from time to time, out of the building where they work I see them sitting with others in the unit, having lunch or just having a cup of coffee. No one forces them to do so. It is very natural, and I think that says it all."
What type of work do they do?
"Their job is to take visual materials from satellite images and sensors that are in the air. With the help of their officers and decoding tools, they analyze the images and find specific things they need in order to allow those who are planning a mission to get the best data of the area."
How it all began–The RR Plan
Mr. V and Ms. S, veterans of the IDF and the Intelligence organizations, introduced an idea – to utilize the special strengths of people on the autistic spectrum for the needs of the IDF and Israeli intelligence.
They contacted Unit 9900, who showed great interest in the idea and decided to be a partner for the first trial – interpretation of aerial and satellite photographs.
They then Contacted the Ono Academic College – a private academic institution and registered NGO, which also has a school for health professions. Ono Academic College has a vision of "Changing the face of Israeli society," and therefore its management decided to Join the initiative, and together they set up the RR Program – (Roim Rachok – which in Hebrew means looking far beyond the horizons).
The aim of the RR Plan is to teach people on the autistic spectrum professions that utilize their special abilities, thus creating a Win-Win effect. The courses take place in the Ono Academic College. After the students finish the 3 month course, they join the army, where the RR program is still involved in guidance and assistance of the soldiers and their commanders.
For more click LINK
FOR ENTIRE ARTICLE CLICK LINK
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text:
Boris Johnson to open Bexley College new Erith campus
Maria Chiorando
Mayor Johnson has vowed to fight on for the Thames Estuary Airport
New facility offers state of the art equipment
Mayor of London Boris Johnson will be officially opening Bexley College's new Erith campus and unveiling a ceremonial plaque.
The purpose built campus in Walnut Tree Road will provide a wide range of vocational courses for school leavers and adults.
State-of the- art facilities include modern ICT suites, a media studio, a learning resource centre, a fully-equipped gym and a refectory as well as featuring a coffee shop, serviceable Hairdressing and Beauty Therapy Salon which will be open for public use.
The official opening takes place on October 7.
Bexley College


text:
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String.prototype.capitalize = function() {
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


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Confidential Settlement – Apartment Fire Causes Emotional Distress and Burn/Smoke Inhalation Injuries
This case involved an apartment fire in the lower Haight Ashbury district of San Francisco. The fire was actually started in an adjacent building by a an occupant who was cooking. The fire burned out of control and destroyed the property of the plaintiffs who lived in the next building and caused burn and smoke inhalation damage.
The three plaintiffs in this case sued the adjacent building owner for their damages. The owners of both buildings claimed that they were not responsible for the damages to plaintiffs because the fire was unforeseeable and that the sole cause of the fire was the resident who did not use proper safety procedures while cooking.
The law offices of Winer, Burritt & Scott, LLP, hired a fire expert and safety expert who, after a thorough investigation, were able to determine that although the fire in the adjacent building may have not have been defendant's fault a proper firewall between the two buildings would have prevented the injuries to the plaintiffs. The lack of a fire wall did not meet building code standards. Thus, the plaintiffs were able to receive compensation for their serious injuries.
RESULT: confidential settlement on behalf of plaintiffs


Quantitative Cost and Schedule Risk Analysis often uses the Monte Carlo method of simulation to model the impacts of various risks. By using variable rather than fixed (deterministic) values, the simulation generates random values for the variables across a selected number of iterations producing an overall set of results. By determining the cumulative percentage of overall results, it is possible to select a value that represents a specified level of confidence, or vice-versa.
For each simulation iteration, the result for schedule using the random variable is shown.
For each simulation iteration, the result for cost using the random variable is shown.
For both cost ($) and schedule (Duration), the results for each iteration are plotted as they are generated.
The purple line indicates the % of confidence of achieving the deterministic value.


Blaklion in training, partnered by Phil Kirby's head lad Simon Olle. (Pic: Courtesy of Aintree Racecourse).
Blaklion was brought down at the first fence in last year's Randox Health Grand National and his new connections are hoping for better luck when he returns to Aintree on April 6.
Formerly trained by Nigel Twiston-Davies, Blaklion was transferred to Yorkshire trainer Philip Kirby in February after being purchased privately by owners Darren and Annaley Yates.
Blaklion will be making his debut for Kirby when he lines up in the world's greatest steeplechase that carries prize money of £1-million. His new trainer is hopeful of a big run from his charge who finished fourth when sent off the 8-1 favourite in the 2017 National.
The 10-year-old showed his liking for the Grand National fences when winning the Becher Handicap Chase by nine lengths in December 2017 and Kirby is upbeat about the chances of Blaklion, who has been allotted 10st 12lb for this year's contest.
"Blaklion is in good form and we have been happy with him since his racecourse gallop at Wetherby [on March 19]," Kirby said.


Serotonin Records returns with a compilation of futuristic electronic funk. "It's What We Live For: Volume 2" is the second in a series of compilations sharing our vision of sounds of tomorrow.
bpmf has been making electronic music since '84. In the late 80s he produced hip/hop which allowed him to gather a large library of breakbeats. In the 90s he released techno as a member of Prototype 909, chillout as a member of Rancho Relaxo All-Stars and electro as half of Synapse. bpmf has released electro on Serotonin and EMF. He mostly plays live techno but enjoys mixing it up and surprising people. "Zu Heiß für Uns" is a breaks-heavy tribute to his recently departed friend Frank Heiss.
NYC-based singer, multi-instrumentalist, DJ and producer Heidi Sabertooth has a serious love for hardware. Grit-laced drum loops, vintage acid and a tide of unruly sound clatters forth from her studio. Creating her unique brand of avant electronics since 2012 she shares it with the world on her Newtown Radio show Deep Dive and her residency at Bossa Nova Civic Club. Her highly lauded live hardware performances and vinyl-heavy dj sets have cemented her own place among NYC's techno community and beyond. 2017 saw her debut EP on Motor Records, 2018 EP 'Neu U' released on Lost Soul Enterprises ,'Machine Funk Is Our Game Volume 2.' on Kraftjerkz contains a track. The brutal dark funk of "So You Want To Take Back Your Will" takes Serotonin deeper than ever.
Somatic Responses are veterans of the Breakcore scene, brothers Paul and John Healy have been creating complex, distorted techno since the mid 90s. Unlike the break-heavy, jungle sounds of their contemporaries, Somatic Responses have remained more experimental, sounding closer to the acid-laced Braindance outcrop of artists such as Autechre and Aphex Twin. The hypnotic soundscape of "Strategy of Desire" sets the perfect mood for an early morning wind down.
John Selway has built a high quality catalog of diverse productions, his own and as a collaborator. From Chaotic Sound Matrix; his contributions to early Deep Dish; his first success in the techno world as part of the seminal New York duo Disintegrator to his most successful Smith & Selway, his deep/minimal techno label CSM; intelligent electro-funk of Synapse and Serotonin Records, the electro/synth-pop of Memory Boy, to the wild improvisational eclecticism of Rancho Relaxo Allstars. Here he sacrifices his own funky "Brainchild" to ensure that the millennium sound continues on Serotonin.
The post SERD023 Various – "Its What We Live For Volume 2" appeared first on Hammarica.


Quality of housing is crucial to an individual's quality of life as it is known to affect human health and well-being. Several studies have employed different methods to assess housing quality. These methods, however, failed to account for the interdependence among the factors (criteria) used for evaluating the quality of housing. This thesis proposes an Analytic Network Process (ANP)-based framework, integrated into Geographic Information Systems (GIS), to assess housing quality. ANP is a multicriteria analysis method. It provides a tool for identifying the relative importance of all the elements (criteria) influencing a goal of decision/evaluation problem (e.g., the problem of evaluating housing quality). The method allows for incorporating dependence relationships into the multicriteria evaluation procedure. A case study of housing quality evaluation at the district level in Ghana using the framework is presented. A set of quality based indicators related to the physical (structural material, dwelling types, housing services), socio-economic (tenure and household density (overcrowding) and environmental (modes of solid waste and liquid waste disposal) aspects of dwellings was used for the evaluation. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach. The GIS-based ANP approach allows for examining spatial distribution of housing quality. It also identifies the most important factors (indicators) contributing to the variability of housing quality in Ghana.
Hussey, Lucia Kafui, "Analytic Network Process (ANP) for Housing Quality Evaluation: A Case Study in Ghana" (2014). Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository. 2407.


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Q: Can't get Exocortex FFT to work I'm writing an application that will analyze data from an accelerometer. One of the most important algorithms for this is obviously the FFT, and after much looking I found that Exocortexs library is one of the best for this.
Anyway, when I try to implement it I get this exception:
An unhandled exception of type 'System.ArgumentOutOfRangeException' occurred in Exocortex.DSP.v1.dll

Additional information: must be a power of 2

Here's the code:
class FFT
    {
        public Exocortex.DSP.ComplexF[] FourierTransform(List<double> vector)
        {
            //Dictionary<string, List<double>>

            int vectorLength = vector.Count;
            Exocortex.DSP.ComplexF[] complexData = new Exocortex.DSP.ComplexF[vectorLength];

            for (int i = 0; i < vectorLength; ++i)
            {
                complexData[i].Re = Convert.ToSingle(vector[i]); // Add your real part here
            //    complexData[i].Im = 2; // Add your imaginary part here
            }

            Exocortex.DSP.Fourier.FFT(complexData, Exocortex.DSP.FourierDirection.Forward);

            return complexData;

(This is really just a version of this example: Fast Fourier Transform in C#).
The problem might be as simple as the imaginary part of the acceleration since I assume this kind of data is only real but the answer, the FFT that is, is imaginary.
Thanks in advance!

A: I'm gonna go out on a limb here and suggest that your vectorLength variable is not a a power of 2.
Try cropping your data such that its new length L = N^2, where integer N > 1.
Does that get ride of the exception?
Are you expecting your signal to be periodic in nature? Is it attached to some mechanism rotating/shaking at fairly steady frequency? If not, what would you hope to get out of using an FFT?

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


how can i synchronize scroll-bar listener horizontal for 2 grid which have frozen column each.
i used code below which works for without frozen column but not working with frozen.
thanks jumperchen , its working but problem is that in my project grid display after some action from user in another tab , so script is not working . How can i load script after any event from user.
Again thanks . You r a genius .


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Age of the Earth
Alleged Human Evolution
Government and God
Implications of Evolution
Theistic Evolution
Secular Humanism Is Not for Families
by Caleb Colley, Ph.D.
It falls to the Christian apologist to address secular humanism because it "is a viewpoint that competes against Christianity.... It rejects the existence of a personal God who created the world, revealed Himself in history, and came in the person of Jesus Christ to save the world" (Webber, 1982, p. 16). In 1937, D. Luther Evans noted that "humanism is very much alive" (17[3]:264), and the increasingly secular nature of society causes his words to ring with new veracity (see Hill, 1947, 53[2]:125).
Ed Buckner, writing for the Council for Secular Humanism, asserted that "secular humanist morality" is "pro-family" (2003). This reflects a portion of the International Academy of Humanism's A Declaration of Interdependence:
Parents have the responsibility to bring up their children and provide them with food, shelter, love, education, and cultural enrichment. Children have concomitant duties to discharge in regard to their parents, to love, honor, and support them, and to help care for them when they are sick or elderly. Two individuals who have freely entered into marriage or cohabitation have duties to each other so long as the relationship is viable. Moral devotion does not depend solely on blood-ties, but extends to those with whom one has developed ties of friendship (1988, Section 3).
Secularism also acknowledges the need for other social responsibilities:
Similarly, we also have moral responsibilities to others in the smaller communities in which we have everyday relationships: teacher and student, shopkeeper and customer, doctor and patient, factory worker and consumer, and so on. There are also duties and obligations that we as citizens have to the towns and nation-states in which we live and work (Section 3).
In Kurtz's Humanist Manifesto 2000, we read similar language: "No doubt each person already recognizes multiple responsibilities relative to his or her social context: persons have responsibilities to family, friends, the community, city, state, or nation in which they reside" (p. 35).
Are these statements representative of the actual, logical fruits of secularism, or merely a veneer to make secularism more appealing? Are these ideals of special obligation to family (and, in turn, community) consistent with the overall thrust and many particulars of secular humanism?
Break from Secularist Tradition
The recent statements on secularism's supposed family values break with previous landmark statements of the movement. Secular humanism has been openly antagonistic toward family-oriented values since at least 1973, although the logical implications of even the earlier secular humanism are anti-family (see Humanist Manifesto I, 1933). Perhaps specific anti-family messages were absent from the first Manifesto because the document was meant to be a general charter (with specifically religious overtones) of secular humanism. Secularists may have thought anti-family messages were too distasteful to the public in 1933. By 1973, however, humanists were ready to deal with the sexual revolution by providing a more detailed explication of their devious purposes. The second Manifesto illustrates this:
In the area of sexuality, we believe that intolerant attitudes, often cultivated by orthodox religions and puritanical cultures, unduly repress sexual conduct. The right to birth control, abortion, and divorce should be recognized.... [N]either do we wish to prohibit, by law or social sanction, sexual behavior between consenting adults. The many varieties of sexual exploration should not in themselves be considered "evil"....[A] civilized society should be a tolerant one. Short of harming others or compelling them to do likewise, individuals should be permitted to express their sexual proclivities and pursue their lifestyles as they desire (1973, Section 6).
A secularist claims the right to do, essentially, anything he pleases. With a commitment to irresponsible sexuality rather than familial responsibility, however, the second Manifesto logically militates against the propagation of humanity via the family structure. Fittingly, the second Manifesto contains only passing reference to the traditional family—only to show that it needs democratizing (Section 8; cf. Kurtz, 2000, p. 57). On the other hand, the second Manifesto proposes a world community for the entire "human family" (Section 12, emp. added; Section 13).
Family vs. Self
In his 1978 Harvard University address, Alexander Solzhenitsyn warned about a "destructive and irresponsible freedom" in the West. "Society appears to have little defense against the abyss of human decadence." Secular humanism, lacking Christian regulation, places society in precisely that predicament. Secularists cannot escape the conflict between its overarching priority on individual rights and the ideals of familial commitment. "[T]he individual must experience a full range of civil liberties in all societies. This includes a recognition of an individual's right to die with dignity, euthanasia, and the right to suicide" (Humanist Manifesto II, 1973, Section 7, emp. added). "Humanists believe that the right to...abortion, and divorce should be recognized" (Section 6; cf. Kurtz, 2000, p. 47). The arguments for advocates of euthanasia and abortion are encroachments on the inherent value of human life and therefore are destructive to human life and potential families (see Colley, 2007b; Harrub, 2002).
Coupling this with the humanists' favored right to "the control of one's own body...sexual preference and orientation," and "reproductive freedom" (A Declaration..., 1988), we infer the clearly implied message: It does not matter what you do concerning your own family, as long as you recognize the whole world as your family, and avoid telling someone else what to do; your responsibility is to fulfill your own sexual passions with indiscriminate abandon.
Wendy Kaminer, writing for the Council for Secular Humanism, alleged that traditional religion is responsible for the high divorce rate in the "Bible-belt" (2001). However, research has shown that other factors, such as marriage at younger ages in certain areas, contribute to failed marriages (see Stanton, 2007). Adherence to biblical principles could not possibly cause divorce (see Malachi 2:16; Matthew 19:9), but secular humanism allows for the dissolution of families via divorce whenever a marriage partner perceives that his marriage has caused inconvenience (A Declaration..., 1988, Section 3). Because secular humanism reflects what we may label "selfist" ideals, psychologist Paul C. Vitz's comments on the practical fruits of selfism are pertinent:
It is certainly no accident that many case histories in selfist literature are people in conflict with their spouses or families over some self-defined goal. With monotonous regularity the selfist literature sides with those values that encourage divorce, breaking up, dissolution of marital or family ties. All of this is done in the name of growth, autonomy, and "continuing the flux" (1977, p. 83).
Extensive research by Elizabeth Marquardt, a scholar with the Institute for American Values, argues persuasively that there is no such thing as a "good" divorce, because children of divorce suffer psychologically and emotionally (2006). But then again, the second Manifesto prescribes care for children only to the degree that it seeks to indoctrinate them with the religion of secularism (see "Favorable Climate...," 2000).
Family values are inconsistent with statements such as this: "[I]ndividuals should not be unduly restrained, restricted, or prohibited from exercising a wide range of personal choices. This includes...freedom to pursue one's own lifestyle, so long as one does not prevent others from exercising their rights" (Kurtz, 2000, p. 47). Children need the near-constant attention of their parents, but what if the parents happen to be secular humanists who have their own agenda? Not to mention pre-born children who need care rather than destruction.
Where in secular humanism's alleged "pro-family" stance might we fit the promotion of homosexuality (e.g., Kurtz, 2000, p. 48; Humanist Manifesto II, 1973, Section 6)? According to the Bible, homosexuality is a sinful practice (Romans 1:22-29; 1 Corinthians 6:9-11; cf. Miller and Harrub, 2004). And, while biblical evidence against homosexuality would not faze a thoroughgoing secularist, it would seem that, because homosexuality also causes serious health risks and prohibits procreation (see Byrd, 2006), humanists would stand against homosexuality in the name of preserving human life and creating new families. Obviously, they do not.
Secular humanism, dedicated to the whim of individual humans, is antithetical to family values, regardless of the occasional lip-service humanists give to familial obligations. Webber summarized the issue:
The secular humanists...always seem to stand on the side of human freedom. They defend the right of the mother to abort her child; the right of the pornographer to promote and sell his smut; the right of homosexuals to teach their way of life in schools as a "neutral" option so students can make their own choices; and they campaign for the right to show X-rated movies, as well as the right to treat delicate sexual matters in a free and open way on TV, in the classroom, and in the theater. The danger of the secularist point of view is that it promotes a sick, narcissistic society in which no one thinks in terms of anything but "my" rights (1982, p. 49).
Secular humanists have lost sight of the need for balance between individual rights and personal responsibility.
Family vs. State
Shadia B. Drury wrote for the Council for Secular Humanism: "[C]onservatives are nostalgic for traditional societies in which the individual was buffered from the terrifying power of the state by 'intermediate institutions' such as the family and the church" (2007). Her implication is that, where the state is empowered by the majority of humans, it should possess unlimited authority over the family and even may (probably should!) eradicate the religious establishment. In effect, the state may impose its standard of truth, justice, and virtue as long as the majority has elected the decision-making officials.
The logical, practical fruit of humanism is tyranny. The 13th affirmation of the first Manifesto reveals that humanists are the sole regulators of "[t]he intelligent evaluation, transformation, control, and direction of such associations and institutions with a view to the enhancement of human life..." (1933). The 14th affirmation gives insight concerning how this revolution might be accomplished: "The humanists are firmly convinced that existing acquisitive and profit-motivated society has shown itself to be inadequate and that a radical change in methods, controls, and motives must be instituted" (1933). Waggoner wrote: "The purpose and program of humanism is to evaluate, transform, control, and direct all associations and institutions. The state is the means by which such is accomplished—however, whenever, wherever, and in whatever areas the state may choose" (1988).
Secular humanism's deference to the state has serious implications for families. If a government determines that families should be limited to two children, a position some are advocating for England's families, then citizens would have a moral responsibility to comply (Vidal, 2007). China already imposes a one-child limit on its families (see Mcelroy, 2001). And, since the government has declared abortion legal in America, its citizens should support abortion rights fully. When a government determines to present all elementary school students with specifically atheistic indoctrination, then parents need to accept gratefully the new curriculum. If a government outlaws Christianity, then Christian families would be obligated to abandon their religion instantly, with no regrets. After all, the 1980 Declaration unveils democracy as the humanists' vehicle for expunging theistic religion from society, and establishing humanism as the world religion. Examples of actual and potential governmental encroachments on families could be multiplied, and each would be consistent with the logical fruits of secular humanism.
Other than opportune popular consensus and perhaps "sentimental appeal to human experience," secular humanism has no logical basis for calling human beings to care for one another in families, because each person is responsible only to fulfill his own self-determined purposes. As secular humanism positioned itself against the sanctity of life and traditional, biblical theism (see Colley, 2007a; Colley, 2007b), it proclaimed itself logically antithetical to the traditional, biblical family structure. It seeks to replace the family with the individual, as the basic unit of society. Quite simply, secular humanism offers no particular respect to nuclear families and their extended families, because social responsibility is not to one's family, but to the whole world. Tragically, secular humanism's values are destructive to everyone in the world who adopts them.
Secular humanism is an atheistic form of humanism. Has the time "passed for theism" (Humanist Manifesto I, 1933)? In 1982, Eternity published "A Christian Humanist Manifesto," in which the authors attempted to give a Christian assessment of the value and purposes of humanity in response to secular humanism. In it, we read of the values that undergird the traditional family:
In contrast to secular humanism, therefore, Christian humanism does not hesitate to speak of absolute truth, goodness, beauty, love, morality, the sanctity of life, duty, fidelity, hope, and immortality. These are not empty religious sentiments, but the natural language of those who know even if partially, of their creation and redemption by a loving God.
This ideology is suited perfectly for families, because it stems from the One Who instituted marriage and the family in the long ago. He, not man, is the measure of all things.
Buckner, Ed (2003), "Don't Secular Humanists Believe in the Golden Rule and in Being Good to People, and Isn't That in the Bible?" Council for Secular Humanism, [On-line], URL: http://secularhumanism.org/index.php?section=columns&page= goldenrule.
Byrd, Dean (2006), "The American Journal of Public Health Highlights Risks of Homosexual Practices," National Association for Research & Therapy of Homosexuality, [On-line], URL: http://www.narth.com/docs/risks.html.
"A Christian Humanist Manifesto" (1982), Christian Humanist, [On-line], URL: http://www.christianhumanist.org/2007/08/christian-humanist- manifesto.html.
Colley, Caleb (2007a), "Secular Humanism and the Reorganization of Religion," [On-line], URL: http://apologeticspress.org/articles/3405.
Colley, Caleb (2007b), "Secular Humanism and the Value of Human Life," [On-line], URL: http://apologeticspress.org/articles/3377.
A Declaration of Interdependence: A New Global Ethics (1988), International Humanist and Ethical Union, [On-line], URL: http://www.iheu.org/node/2140.
Drury, Shadia B. (2007), "'Judicial Activism' and the Conservative Revolution," Council for Secular Humanism, [On-line], URL: http://www.secularhumanism.org/index.php?section=library&page= sbdrury_26_3.
Evans, D. Luther (1937), "The Persistent Claims of Humanism," The Journal of Religion, 17[3]:263-272, July.
"Favorable Climate Evolving for Teaching Creationism?" (2000), Education Reporter, [On-line], URL: http://www.eagleforum.org/educate/2000/apr00/creationism.html.
Harrub, Brad (2002), "The Inherent Value of Human Life," [On-line], URL: http://apologeticspress.org/articles/132.
Hill, Reuben, (1947), "The American Family: Problem or Solution?" The American Journal of Sociology, 53[2]:125-130, September.
Humanist Manifesto I (1933), American Humanist Association, [On-line], URL: http://www.americanhumanist.org/about/manifesto1.html.
Humanist Manifesto II (1973), American Humanist Association, [On-line], URL: http://www.americanhumanist.org/about/manifesto2.php.
Kaminer, Wendy (2001), "Marriage, Religion, and the Law," Council for Secular Humanism, [On-line], URL: http://www.secularhumanism.org/library/fi/kaminer_21_4.html.
Kurtz, Paul (2000), Humanist Manifesto 2000: A Call for a New Planetary Humanism (Amherst, NY: Prometheus).
Marquardt, Elizabeth (2006), Between Two Worlds: The Inner Lives of Children of Divorce (New York: Crown).
Mcelroy, Damien (2001), "Chinese Region 'Must Conduct 20,000 Abortions,'" Telegraph, [On-line], URL: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=MBO41XZJLB0B DQFIQMGSFFWAVCBQWIV0?xml=/news/2001/08/05/wchin05.xml.
Miller, Dave and Brad Harrub (2004), "An Investigation of the Biblical Evidence Against Homosexuality," [On-line], URL: http://apologeticspress.org/articles/2577.
A Secular Humanist Declaration (1980), New Jersey Humanist Network, [On-line], URL: http://www.njhn.org/humanism_info/declaration.html.
Solzhenitsyn, Alexander (1978), "Address at Harvard Class Day Afternoon Exercises," Columbia University, [On-line], URL: http://www.columbia.edu/cu/augustine/arch/solzhenitsyn/ harvard1978.html.
Stanton, Glenn T. (2007), "Divorce and Cohabitation," Focus on the Family, [On-line], URL: http://www.family.org/socialissues/A000000629.cfm.
Vidal, John (2007), "UK Needs a Two-Child Limit, Says Population Report," The Guardian, [On-line], URL: http://politics.guardian.co.uk/thinktanks/story/0,,2123540,00.html.
Vitz, Paul C. (1977), Psychology As Religion: The Cult of Self-Worship (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans).
Waggoner, Robert (1988), "The Statist Face of Humanism," [On-line], URL: http://biblicaltheism.com/statistface.htm#_ftn3.
Webber, Robert E. (1982), Secular Humanism: Threat and Challenge (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan).
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