The adaptation of the Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire – psychometric properties in a polish sample

Abstract

The Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (DEBQ) contains three scales which assess emotional, external and restrained eating styles that may contribute to or attenuate the development of overweight. The main goal of this study was to adapt and investigate the psychometric properties of the Polish version of the DEBQ. A sample of 785 Polish adults answered the questionnaire. Confirmatory Factor Analyses were used to evaluate the factor structure of the DEBQ. Next, the measurement invariance of the DEBQ across gender and BMI-status was assessed. Reliabilities were estimated with Cronbach’s alpha and 4-week retest. Additionally, the convergent validity of the DEBQ was examined with the Eating Attitude Test-26 (EAT-26), assessing individuals’ attitudes towards eating behaviours and eating disorders. The results showed that the internal structure was similar to the theoretical proposal. It indicated that the three-factor structure had the best fit to the data, and this dimensional structure proved to be invariant across sex and BMI-status. The reliability estimates were satisfactory (all ≥ .70). Finally, convergent validity of the DEBQ was supported by significant relationships of its subscales to measures of the EAT-26. The DEBQ presented high cross-language replicability and seems to be an effective instrument for research in Polish adults.