Intuitive Eating Scale-2 for adolescents: Validity and reliability study in Turkish adolescents

The Intuitive Eating Scale-2 (IES-2) is currently used for this concept and consists of four sub-dimensions. This cross-sectional study aimed to determine the validity and reliability of the culturally and linguistically adapted IES-2, which examines multiple aspects of eating behavior in adults, in the Turkish adolescent population for the first time. The factor structure of the IES-2 was evaluated in study 1 (n = 300, 57.7% girl) using exploratory factor analysis (EFA), and in study 2 (n = 470, 60.9%) with confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The Figure Rating Scale (FRS), the Emotional Eating Scale Adapted for Use in Children and Adolescents Scale (EES-C), the Children's Eating Attitudes Test (ChEAT), and BMI-Z score were used to assess convergent validity, and their relationship with IES-2 was examined. Cronbach-α, McDonald's omega, Spearman-Brown, and Guttman split-half coefficients were used for reliability analysis. The four-factor structure of the IES-2 was obtained through EFA, and items with low factor loadings were removed. The 15-item version of the scale was created and verified by CFA. The new scale adapted for adolescents is the IES-2-Turkish adolescents (IES-2-TA). Good fit index values were achieved because of CFA. The Cronbach-α coefficients for the sub-dimensions (unconditional permission to eat-UPE: 0.649, eating for physical reasons-EPR: 0.683, relying on hunger and satiety cues-RHSC: 0.871, body-food choice congruence-BFCC: 0.751) and total scale (0.789) were found to be at good values. A negative correlation was found between IES-2-TA and ChEAT, as well as EES-C, for convergent validity.

The analysis of data revealed that the new version of the IES-2-TA is a reliable and valid instrument to assess intuitive eating in Turkish adolescents.

• Intuitive eating is an eating behavior that emphasizes internal bodily cues to guide food decisions. • There is no scale to measure intuitive eating in children and adolescents in Turkey.

• This scale (IES-2-TA), adapted from the adult IES-2, is valid and reliable for assessing intuitive eating in Turkish adolescents.