Evaluating Emotional Eating in Children from the Perspective of Parents: Psychometric Properties of the Parent Version of the Emotional Eating Scale Adapted for Children and Adolescents.

BACKGROUND

Emotional eating is associated with adverse health outcomes in children, including elevated weight status. Currently, there is not a well-validated parent-report measure of emotional eating for young children. This study assessed the reliability and validity of the 10-item parent version of the Emotional Eating Scale Adapted for Children and Adolescents (EES-C) Short-Form.

METHODS

The participants were 207 parents and 144 children from the southern United States. They completed the parent- and child-report EES-C Short-Form and responded to measures related to child eating behaviors, mood, and gratitude.

RESULTS

The parent-report EES-C Short-Form demonstrated good internal consistency reliability (Cronbach's alpha = 0.94). Test-retest reliability was also supported, as evidenced by a medium correlation (ICC = 0.56,

CONCLUSIONS

The results from the current study provide preliminary evidence supporting the reliability and validity of the parent version of the EES-C Short-Form. For the purpose of screening children in school or primary care settings, the EES-C Short-Form may be practical and helpful in identifying children who may be at risk of developing adverse health outcomes or more-severe eating disorder pathology.