Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire-R18 (TFEQ-R18) Spanish Version: Factor Structure Analysis among Normal Weight and Overweight Adults

Abstract

The objective of this study was to examine the construct validity of the Three Factor Eating Questionnaire (TFEQ) Revised-18, an instrument designed to measure: Uncontrolled Eating, Emotional Eating and Cognitive Restraint, in a sample of Mexican adults of different weights. 342 man and women, with age range 19-79 years old (M=40), were recruited. TFEQ was emailed to the participants who earlier had their weight and height measured. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis was applied to examine TFEQ structure. The original three factor structure was corroborated, with nine items loading high on Uncontrolled Eating factor, three on Emotional Eating and four out of the original six on Cognitive Restraint. Two items were excluded due to low item-total correlations. Higher levels of Cognitive Restraint were associated with higher BMI (r=.13, p < .05), we found no connection between Uncontrolled Eating or Emotional Eating and body weight. Our findings suggest that the abbreviated TFEQ (16 items), is a psychometrically valid measure, and can be used to evaluate the tendencies of Cognitive Restraint, Uncontrolled Eating and Emotional Eating in the population of Mexican adults with different body weights.

Emotional Eating among Ghanaian University Students: Associations with Physical and Mental Health Measures

“…The fact that EE was the only subscale associated with health outcomes could stem from the questionable internal consistency demonstrated by the UE subscale (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.610) and poor internal consistency demonstrated by the CR subscale (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.371) in our study population. While a number of statisticians have urged caution when using rule of thumb cut-off scales to assess reliability, e.g., [ 32 , 33 ]; other researchers who explored the psychometric properties of the TFEQ tool in their distinct populations have noted that the CR subscale is not reliable [ 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 ] and, in some cases, modified the questions within the CR subscale to improve reliability [ 34 , 35 ]. The evaluation of the psychometric properties of the TFEQ-18 in the Ghanaian population is outside the scope of this brief communication, but this is worthy of exploration in a more representative sample, and the questions regarding reliability, particularly with CR, should be used to temper conclusions based on the results presented.…”

Impact of Weight on Quality-of-Life Questionnaire-Lite, Mexican Version. Reliability and Validity Evidence

“…This last item was later recoded to a fouritem scale. The TFEQ was validated with the sample of this study via exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis (Wrzecionkowska & Rivera Aragón, 2021). Cognitive restraint scale was reduced to four items.…”