Validation of a brief scale assessing Eating Self-Efficacy

Background: Eating self-efficacy (ESE) may be defined as the belief in one’s ability to self-regulate eating. Several ESE scales have been proposed but most of them focus on weight management or dieting. We developed a very brief scale assessing ESE in situations in which people face external (i.e. food availability and social eating) or internal (i.e. emotions, tension and hunger) pressures for excessive food intake. Methods: Study 1: 412 young female adults completed questionnaires including 25 items aimed at assessing ESE facing those two situations. Explorative Factor Analysis (EFA) was used for selecting items. Study 2: assessed the psychometric properties of the ESE brief scale through Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) and convergent and discriminant validity in 428 young adults (273 females, 155 males). Results: Study 1: EFA highlighted a bifactorial structure. Four items for each factor were selected, explaining 63% of variance. Study 2: CFA confirmed the good fit of the bifactorial hypothesized model (CFI 0.96; χ²=1120.7, p<0.001; SRMR=0.04; RMSA=0.07) and showed good reliability for both subscales (Social, =.786; Emotional, =.820). Latent significant negative correlations with measures of eating disorders and emotional eating supported the convergent validity. Discriminant validity were derived by very low or non-significant correlations with a perfectionism measure. The measure proved to be invariant across gender. Conclusions: The 8-items ESE brief scale seems to be a valid and reliable instrument to assess eating self-efficacy related to social and emotional contexts. Its potential use in non-clinical and clinical research and interventions should be evaluated in future studies.