Brief emotional eating scale: a multinational study of factor structure, validity, and invariance

Emotional eating or the tendency to eat in response to emotional states can be assessed using self-report mea- sures. The Emotional Eating Scale-II is a commonly used and reliable instrument that measures the desire to eat in response to a range of unpleasant and pleasant emotions. The current study...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Ruiz, Montse C., Devonport, Tracey, Chen Wilson, Chao-Hwa (Josephine), Nichols, Wendy, Cagas, Jonathan Y., Fernández-Montalvo, Javier, Choi, Youngjun, Gan, Yiqun, Robazza, Claudio
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2023
País:España
Institución:Universidad Pública de Navarra
Repositorio:Academica-e. Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad Pública de Navarra
OAI Identifier:oai:academica-e.unavarra.es:2454/44948
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/2454/44948
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Brief measure
Cross-cultural
Factor analysis
Food craving
Self-report
Reliability
Descripción
Sumario:Emotional eating or the tendency to eat in response to emotional states can be assessed using self-report mea- sures. The Emotional Eating Scale-II is a commonly used and reliable instrument that measures the desire to eat in response to a range of unpleasant and pleasant emotions. The current study aimed to corroborate the validity of the EES-II and expand its utility by investigating its dimensionality and testing its measurement invariance in samples from English-speaking and non-English-speaking countries. Convergent and predictive validity in respect of food craving, eating, and health indicators were also examined. This cross-national study included a total of 2485 adult participants recruited from Finland, North America, Philippines, United Kingdom, China, Italy, Spain, and South Korea, who completed the EES-II in six different languages. Factor analyses supported a four-factor structure including valence (pleasant, unpleasant) and activation (high, low) for a 12-item English version and slightly modified non-English adaptations. The model exhibited good fit in all samples, and convergent validity was demonstrated. Full invariance of factor loadings and partial invariance of factor loading, intercepts, and error variances was established across samples. Structural equation models revealed that high activation (pleasant and unpleasant) states predicted food cravings and reported eating. Overall findings across multiple samples and countries supported the factorial structure, reliability, invariance, and validity of the resulting Brief Emotional Eating Scale (BEES).