Development and validation of an Arabic questionnaire to assess
psychosocial determinants of eating behavior among adolescents: a
cross-sectional study
Background: There is a scarcity of studies that evaluate the
psychosocial determinants of eating behavior among adolescents in the
Eastern Mediterranean region. The availability of such data is limited
by the lack of valid culturally appropriate tools. The current study
aims to develop and validate an Arabic questionnaire that measures
psychosocial determinants of eating behavior among adolescents.
Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out to validate a
five-scale questionnaire developed to measure nutrition-related
knowledge, attitude, practices, and self-efficacy and social norms.
Content validity was assessed by Lawshe\u2019s method, factor analysis
was used to assess construct validity, and Cronbach\u2019s \u3b1 was
used to test internal consistency. Temporal stability was assessed by
test\u2013retest reliability. A random sample of public and private
school students participated in the validation study. Results: All the
five scales demonstrated excellent content validity (content validity
ratio, CVR 650.778). Factor analysis revealed several dimensions
for each scale. Cronbach\u2019s \u3b1 for the identified dimensions
or subscales ranged between 0.495 and 0.809 indicating acceptable
internal consistency. Cronbach\u2019s \u3b1 for the total scales
ranged between 0.759 and 0.836. Test\u2013retest analysis revealed
good temporal stability (intraclass correlation, ICC >0.7).
Conclusions: A psychometrically valid tool to measure psychosocial
determinants of eating behavior was developed. This tool can serve as a
potential instrument for pretest and impact evaluation of ongoing
nutrition education interventions and curricula. Based on results
obtained from this tool, efficacious modifications can be instilled for
nutrition policies and interventions