Validation of the Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire in a Romanian Adult Population

Abstract

(1) Background: Obesity, part of the triple global burden of disease, is increasingly attracting research on its preventive and curative management. Knowledge of eating behavior can be useful both at the individual level (to individualize treatment for obesity) and the population level (to implement more suitable food policies). The Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (DEBQ) is a widely used international tool to assess eating behavior, i.e., emotional, external and restricted eating styles. The aim of this study was to validate the Romanian version of DEBQ, as obesity is a major concern in Romania. (2) Methods: Our study tested the psychometric properties of the Romanian version of DEBQ on an adult population and explored the associations of eating behavior with weight status (3) Results: The study showed a factor load similar to the original version of the questionnaire and a very good internal validity (Cronbach’s alpha fidelity coefficient greater than 0.8 for all scales of the questionnaire) for the Romanian version of DEBQ and showed that all of the scales positively correlated with body mass index in both men and women. (4) Conclusions: This study will enable the use of the DEBQ Romanian version on the adult population of Romania where the findings could be incorporated into developing better strategies to reduce the burden of nutrition-related diseases.

The melanocortin‐4 receptor pathway and the emergence of precision medicine in obesity management

“…37 The questionnaire comprises 33 questions and participants respond to items using a scale ranging from 1 (never) to 5 (very often), with higher scores indicating greater endorsement of the eating behaviour. 41 It has been used worldwide, having been translated into more than 12 languages, and it provides reliable and valid information across various adult populations. 42 Studies have demonstrated that individuals who score high on these emotional eating scales exhibit a tendency to consume higher amounts of energy-dense foods following inducement of negative emotions compared to emotionally neutral control situations.…”

“…For instance, the DEBQ is composed of scales for emotional eating (desire to eat under different negative emotions, including stress, depression, and anxiety), external eating (eating regardless of the internal state of hunger or satiety), and restrained eating (intention to restrict food intake to prevent weight gain or promote weight loss) 37 . The questionnaire comprises 33 questions and participants respond to items using a scale ranging from 1 (never) to 5 (very often), with higher scores indicating greater endorsement of the eating behaviour 41 . It has been used worldwide, having been translated into more than 12 languages, and it provides reliable and valid information across various adult populations 42 .…”

Reliability and validity of the dutch eating behavior questionnaire in an online format for university students from low-income regions in a pandemic context: A 24 hour MESYN study

“…Epidemiological studies have also been affected, leading to an explosion of nonface-to-face research (4) and tools for the online environment (5). Among the instruments used for the evaluation of eating behavior, the Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (DEBQ) has a consistent psychometric capacity with a robust structure, which provides reliable and valid information in different populations (including adults from different cultures) (6)(7)(8)(9)(10).…”

Emotional Appetite Questionnaire: psychometric properties in Brazilian adult samples before and after the COVID-19 pandemic onset

“…Although the EMAQ is an interesting instrument, it has been little used in the literature ( Bourdier et al, 2017 ; Geliebter & Aversa, 2003 ; Nolan, Halperin & Geliebter, 2010 ; Sabry et al, 2020 ) compared to other instruments such as TFEQ-18 ( Brytek-Matera, Rogoza & Czepczor-Bernat, 2017 ; Karlsson et al, 2000 ; Lauzon et al, 2004 ; Martins et al, 2020b ; Medeiros et al, 2017 ; Stunkard & Messick, 1985 ) and DEBQ ( Arhire et al, 2021 ; Doostfatemeh et al, 2022 ; Małachowska, Jeżewska-Zychowicz & Gębski, 2021 ; Van Strien et al, 1986 ). One plausible reason for this is the complexity of assessing emotions, especially when negative and positive aspects are examined simultaneously ( Russell, 1980 ).…”