The Psychometric Properties of the Caregiver Feeding Style Questionnaire: A Cross-Cultural Validation in Spanish...

Parental feeding styles are a key dimension of parent-child interactions during mealtimes and have a significant influence on children's development. Through their impact on children's eating behaviours, these styles are a key focus for enhancing the well-being of both the child and the family as a whole. This study aimed to cross-culturally adapt, translate, and validate the Caregiver Feeding Style Questionnaire (CFSQ) in a Spanish sample. This is a cross-sectional study that conducted in a Spanish cohort. Data were collected at four time points, from hospital discharge until the children were aged 7-10 years old. As part of the CFSQ validation study, the original English version underwent linguistic validation, which included 20 cognitive interviews with parents. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) of the CFSQ was then conducted using the cohort sample. A total of 194 Spanish parents of children aged 7-10 years old completed the CFSQ. Some items were slightly modified to improve cultural adaptation. Two CFA models were tested: a bidimensional and a unidimensional model. Both showed acceptable fit indices: bidimensional model -X² = 3,385.28 (df = 171; p < 0.001), CFI = 0.902, TLI = 0.889, RMSEA = 0.104 (90%CI 0.094-0.115), and SRMR = 0.09; unidimensional model- X² = 2,714.22 (df = 78; p < 0.001), CFI = 0.880, TLI = 0.900, RMSEA = 0.145 (90%CI 0.130-0.161), and SRMR = 0.094-. Both models demonstrated adequate internal consistency. In conclusion, the Spanish version of the CFSQ showed adequate structural validity and psychometric properties. While both models were acceptable, the shorter unidimensional version is preferable due to its parsimony and performance.