Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Psychometric properties of the modified Yale Food Addiction Scale Version 2.0 in an Italian non-clinical sample

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Eating and Weight Disorders - Studies on Anorexia, Bulimia and Obesity Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose

To assess the dimensionality and psychometric properties of the modified Yale Food Addiction Scale 2.0 (mYFAS 2.0) in an Italian non-clinical sample.

Methods

262 adults (184 women) were administered the Italian versions of the mYFAS 2.0, and questionnaires measuring binge eating severity, anxiety and depression symptoms, and emotional dysregulation.

Results

15 individuals (5.7%) met the criteria for a diagnosis of food addiction according to the mYFAS 2.0. Bayesian confirmatory factor analysis supported a single-factor solution for the mYFAS 2.0. The mYFAS 2.0 had good internal consistency (Ordinal α = 0.91), and convergent validity with binge eating severity (r = 0.67, p < 0.001), both anxiety (r = 0.31, p < 0.001) and depressive (r = 0.35, p < 0.001) symptoms, and difficulties in emotion regulation (r = 0.35, p < 0.001). Finally, both discriminant validity with dietary restraint (Gamma = 0.11; p = 0.52) and incremental validity in predicting binge eating severity over emotion dysregulation and psychopathology (b = 0.52; t = 11.11; p < 0.001) were confirmed.

Conclusions

The Italian mYFAS 2.0 has satisfactory psychometric properties and can be used as a brief instrument for the assessment of addictive eating behaviors when time constraints prevent the use of the original version.

Level of Evidence

Level V, cross-sectional descriptive study.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Pursey KM, Stanwell P, Gearhardt AN, Collins CE, Burrows TL (2014) The prevalence of food addiction as assessed by the Yale food addiction scale: a systematic review. Nutrients 6:4552–4590. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu6104552

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  2. Imperatori C, Fabbricatore M, Vumbaca V, Innamorati M, Contardi A, Farina B (2016) Food addiction: definition, measurement and prevalence in healthy subjects and in patients with eating disorders. Riv Psichiatr 51:60–65. https://doi.org/10.1708/2246.24196

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Burrows T, Kay-Lambkin F, Pursey K, Skinner J, Dayas C (2018) Food addiction and associations with mental health symptoms: a systematic review with meta-analysis. J Hum Nutr Diet. https://doi.org/10.1111/jhn.12532

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Hebebrand J, Albayrak O, Adan R, Antel J, Dieguez C, de Jong J et al (2014) “Eating addiction”, rather than “food addiction”, better captures addictive-like eating behavior. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 47:295–306. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2014.08.016

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. American Psychiatric Association (2000) Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders—DSMIV-TR, 4th edn. American Psychiatric Association, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  6. American Psychiatric Association (2013) Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders—DSM-5, 5th edn. American Psychiatric Publishing, Arlington

    Book  Google Scholar 

  7. Gearhardt AN, Corbin WR, Brownell KD (2009) Preliminary validation of the Yale food addiction scale. Appetite 52:430–436. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2008.12.003

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Meule A, Heckel D, Kubler A (2012) Factor structure and item analysis of the Yale food addiction scale in obese candidates for bariatric surgery. Eur Eat Disord Rev 20:419–422. https://doi.org/10.1002/erv.2189

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Innamorati M, Imperatori C, Manzoni GM, Lamis DA, Castelnuovo G, Tamburello A et al (2014) Psychometric properties of the Italian Yale food addiction scale in overweight and obese patients. Eat Weight Disord. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40519-014-0142-3

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Gearhardt AN, White MA, Masheb RM, Morgan PT, Crosby RD, Grilo CM (2012) An examination of the food addiction construct in obese patients with binge eating disorder. Int J Eat Disord 45:657–663. https://doi.org/10.1002/eat.20957

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Granero R, Hilker I, Aguera Z, Jimenez-Murcia S, Sauchelli S, Islam MA et al (2014) Food addiction in a Spanish sample of eating disorders: DSM-5 diagnostic subtype differentiation and validation data. Eur Eat Disord Rev 22:389–396. https://doi.org/10.1002/erv.2311

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Meule A, Vögele C, Kübler A (2012) German translation and validation of the Yale food addiction scale. Diagnostica 58:115–126. https://doi.org/10.1026/0012-1924/a000047

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Brunault P, Ballon N, Gaillard P, Reveillere C, Courtois R (2014) Validation of the French version of the yale food addiction scale: an examination of its factor structure, reliability, and construct validity in a nonclinical sample. Can J Psychiatry 59:276–284. https://doi.org/10.1177/070674371405900507

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  14. Swarna Nantha Y, Abd Patah NA, Ponnusamy Pillai M (2016) Preliminary validation of the Malay Yale Food addiction scale: factor structure and item analysis in an obese population. Clin Nutr ESPEN 16:42–47. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clnesp.2016.08.001

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Chen G, Tang Z, Guo G, Liu X, Xiao S (2015) The Chinese version of the Yale Food Addiction Scale: an examination of its validation in a sample of female adolescents. Eat Behav 18:97–102. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eatbeh.2015.05.002

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Torres S, Camacho M, Costa P, Ribeiro G, Santos O, Vieira FM et al (2017) Psychometric properties of the Portuguese version of the Yale food addiction scale. Eat Weight Disord 22:259–267. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40519-016-0349-6

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Sevinçer GM, Konuk N, Bozkurt S, Saraçli Ö, Coşkun H (2015) Psychometric properties of the Turkish version of the Yale food addiction scale among bariatric surgery patients. Anadolu Psykiyatr De 16:44–53. https://doi.org/10.5455/apd.174345

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Manzoni GM, Rossi A, Pietrabissa G, Varallo G, Molinari E, Poggiogalle E et al (2018) Validation of the Italian Yale food addiction scale in postgraduate university students. Eat Weight Disord 23:167–176. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40519-018-0495-0

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Meule A, Gearhardt AN (2014) Five years of the Yale food addiction scale: taking stock and moving forward. Curr Addict Rep 1:193–205. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40429-014-0021-z

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Gearhardt AN, Corbin WR, Brownell KD (2016) Development of the Yale food addiction scale version 2.0. Psychol Addict Behav 30:113–121. https://doi.org/10.1037/adb0000136

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Granero R, Jimenez-Murcia S, Gearhardt AN, Aguera Z, Aymami N, Gomez-Pena M et al (2018) Validation of the Spanish version of the Yale Food Addiction Scale 2.0 (YFAS 2.0) and clinical correlates in a sample of eating disorder, gambling disorder, and healthy control participants. Front Psychiatry 9:208. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2018.00208

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  22. Meule A, Muller A, Gearhardt AN, Blechert J (2017) German version of the Yale Food Addiction Scale 2.0: Prevalence and correlates of ‘food addiction’ in students and obese individuals. Appetite 115:54–61. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2016.10.003

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  23. Aloi M, Rania M, Rodriguez Munoz RC, Jimenez Murcia S, Fernandez-Aranda F, De Fazio P et al (2017) Validation of the Italian version of the Yale Food Addiction Scale 2.0 (I-YFAS 2.0) in a sample of undergraduate students. Eat Weight Disord 22:527–533. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40519-017-0421

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  24. Brunault P, Courtois R, Gearhardt AN, Gaillard P, Journiac K, Cathelain S et al (2017) Validation of the French version of the DSM-5 yale food addiction scale in a nonclinical sample. Can J Psychiatry 62:199–210. https://doi.org/10.1177/0706743716673320

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  25. Schulte EM, Gearhardt AN (2017) Development of the modified yale food addiction scale version 2.0. Eur Eat Disord Rev 25:302–308. https://doi.org/10.1002/erv.2515

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  26. Nunes-Neto PR, Kohler CA, Schuch FB, Quevedo J, Solmi M, Murru A et al (2018) Psychometric properties of the modified Yale Food Addiction Scale 2.0 in a large Brazilian sample. Rev Bras Psiquiatr. https://doi.org/10.1590/1516-4446-2017-2432

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  27. Flint AJ, Gearhardt AN, Corbin WR, Brownell KD, Field AE, Rimm EB (2014) Food-addiction scale measurement in 2 cohorts of middle-aged and older women. Am J Clin Nutr 99:578–586. https://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.113.068965

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  28. Rodriguez-Martin BC, Innamorati M, Imperatori C, Fabbricatore M, Harnic D, Janiri L et al (2016) Eating Behaviors in Cuban Adults: results from an exploratory transcultural study. Front Psychol 7:1455. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01455

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  29. Gormally J, Black S, Daston S, Rardin D (1982) The assessment of binge eating severity among obese persons. Addict Behav 7:47–55. https://doi.org/10.1016/0306-4603(82)90024-7

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  30. Zigmond AS, Snaith RP (1983) The hospital anxiety and depression scale. Acta Psychiatr Scand 67:361–370. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0447.1983.tb09716.x

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  31. Powers A, Stevens J, Fani N, Bradley B (2015) Construct validity of a short, self report instrument assessing emotional dysregulation. Psychiatry Res 225:85–92. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2014.10.020

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  32. Marcus MD, Wing RR, Hopkins J (1988) Obese binge eaters: affect, cognitions, and response to behavioural weight control. J Consult Clin Psychol 56:433–439. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-006X.56.3.433

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  33. Ricca V, Mannucci E, Moretti S, Di Bernardo M, Zucchi T, Cabras PL et al (2000) Screening for binge eating disorder in obese outpatients. Compr Psychiatry 41:111–115. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0010-440X(00)90143-3

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  34. Freitas SR, Lopes CS, Appolinario JC, Coutinho W (2006) The assessment of binge eating disorder in obese women: a comparison of the binge eating scale with the structured clinical interview for the DSM-IV. Eat Behav 7:282–289. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eatbeh.2005.09.002

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  35. Robert SA, Rohana AG, Suehazlyn Z, Maniam T, Azhar SS, Azmi KN (2013) The validation of the malay version of binge eating scale: a comparison with the structured clinical interview for the DSM-IV. J Eat Disord 1:28. https://doi.org/10.1186/2050-2974-1-28

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  36. Dezhkam M, Moloodi R, Mootabi F, Omidvar N (2009) Standardization of the binge eating scale among iranian obese population. Iran J Psychiatry 4:143–146

    Google Scholar 

  37. Imperatori C, Innamorati M, Lamis DA, Contardi A, Continisio M, Castelnuovo G et al (2016) Factor structure of the binge eating scale in a large sample of obese and overweight patients attending low energy diet therapy. Eur Eat Disord Rev 24:174–178. https://doi.org/10.1002/erv.2384

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  38. Bjelland I, Dahl AA, Haug TT, Neckelmann D (2002) The validity of the hospital anxiety and depression scale. An updated literature review. J Psychosom Res 52:69–77. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-3999(01)00296-3

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  39. Olsson I, Mykletun A, Dahl AA (2005) The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Rating Scale: a cross-sectional study of psychometrics and case finding abilities in general practice. BMC Psychiatry 5:46. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-244X-5-46

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  40. Iani L, Lauriola M, Costantini M (2014) A confirmatory bifactor analysis of the hospital anxiety and depression scale in an Italian community sample. Health Qual Life Outcomes 12:84. https://doi.org/10.1186/1477-7525-12-84

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  41. Fox-Wasylyshyn SM, El-Masri MM (2005) Handling missing data in self-report measures. Res Nurs Health 28:488–495. https://doi.org/10.1002/nur.20100

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  42. Muthen B, Asparouhov T (2012) Bayesian structural equation modeling: a more flexible representation of substantive theory. Psychol Methods 17:313–335. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0026802

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  43. van de Schoot R, Depaoli S (2014) Bayesian analyses: where to start and what to report. Eur Health Psychol 16:75–84

    Google Scholar 

  44. Zumbo BD, Gadermann AM, Zeisser C (2007) Ordinal versions of coefficients alpha and theta for likert rating scales. J Mod Appl Stat Methods 6:21–29. https://doi.org/10.22237/jmasm/1177992180

    Article  Google Scholar 

  45. Burrows T, Skinner J, McKenna R, Rollo M (2017) Food addiction, binge eating disorder, and obesity: is there a relationship? Behav Sci. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs7030054

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  46. WHO (TheWorld Health Organisation). BMI Classifcation. Available online: http://apps.who.int/bmi/index.jsp?introPage=intro_3.htm. Accessed 10 Oct 2018

  47. Meule A (2012) Food addiction and body-mass-index: a non-linear relationship. Med Hypotheses 79:508–511. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mehy.2012.07.005

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  48. Gearhardt AN, White MA, Masheb RM, Grilo CM (2013) An examination of food addiction in a racially diverse sample of obese patients with binge eating disorder in primary care settings. Compr Psychiatry 54:500–505. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.comppsych.2012.12.009

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  49. Chao AM, Shaw JA, Pearl RL, Alamuddin N, Hopkins CM, Bakizada ZM et al (2017) Prevalence and psychosocial correlates of food addiction in persons with obesity seeking weight reduction. Compr Psychiatry 73:97–104. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.comppsych.2016.11.009

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  50. Ivezaj V, White MA, Grilo CM (2016) Examining binge-eating disorder and food addiction in adults with overweight and obesity. Obesity (Silver Spring) 24:2064–2069. https://doi.org/10.1002/oby.21607

    Article  Google Scholar 

  51. Zellner DA, Garriga-Trillo A, Rohm E, Centeno S, Parker S (1999) Food liking and craving: a cross-cultural approach. Appetite 33:61–70. https://doi.org/10.1006/appe.1999.0234

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  52. Osman JL, Sobal J (2006) Chocolate cravings in American and Spanish individuals: biological and cultural influences. Appetite 47:290–301. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2006.04.008

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  53. Hallam J, Boswell RG, DeVito EE, Kober H (2016) Gender-related differences in food craving and obesity. Yale J Biol Med 89:161–173

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  54. Murphy CM, Stojek MK, MacKillop J (2014) Interrelationships among impulsive personality traits, food addiction. and body mass index. Appetite 73:45–50. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2013.10.008

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  55. Gearhardt AN, Boswell RG, White MA (2014) The association of “food addiction” with disordered eating and body mass index. Eat Behav 15:427–433. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eatbeh.2014.05.001

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  56. Pursey KM, Collins CE, Stanwell P, Burrows TL (2015) Foods and dietary profiles associated with ‘food addiction’ in young adults. Addict Behav Rep 2:41–48. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.abrep.2015.05.007

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  57. Imperatori C, Innamorati M, Lamis DA, Farina B, Fabbricatore M, Contardi A (2018) Body uneasiness is associated with food addiction symptoms: a cross-sectional study. Eur Eat Disord Rev. https://doi.org/10.1002/erv.2640

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  58. Niedhammer I, Bugel I, Bonenfant S, Goldberg M, Leclerc A (2000) Validity of self-reported weight and height in the French GAZEL cohort. Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord 24:1111–1118. https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ijo.0801375

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  59. Jacobson BH, DeBock DH (2001) Comparison of body mass index by self-reported versus measured height and weight. Percept Mot Skills 92:128–132. https://doi.org/10.2466/pms.2001.92.1.128

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  60. Kuczmarski MF, Kuczmarski RJ, Najjar M (2001) Effects of age on validity of self-reported height, weight, and body mass index: findings from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 1988–1994. J Am Diet Assoc 101:28–34. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0002-8223(01)00008-6 quiz 5–6.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  61. Spencer EA, Appleby PN, Davey GK, Key TJ (2002) Validity of self-reported height and weight in 4808 EPIC-Oxford participants. Public Health Nutr 5:561–565. https://doi.org/10.1079/PHN2001322

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  62. Lois K, Kumar S, Williams N, Birrell L (2011) Can self-reported height and weight be relied upon? Occup Med (Lond) 61:590–592. https://doi.org/10.1093/occmed/kqr140

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  63. Imperatori C, Innamorati M, Lamis DA, Farina B, Pompili M, Contardi A et al (2016) Childhood trauma in obese and overweight women with food addiction and clinical-level of binge eating. Child Abuse Negl 58:180–190. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2016.06.023

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  64. Vella SC, Pai NB (2017) A narrative review of potential treatment strategies for food addiction. Eat Weight Disord 22:387–393. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40519-017-0400-2

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Human Sciences, European University of Rome, Via degli Aldobrandeschi 190, 00163, Rome, Italy

    Claudio Imperatori, Mariantonietta Fabbricatore, Giulia Raimondi & Marco Innamorati

  2. Stockton University, Galloway, NJ, USA

    David Lester

  3. Istituto Auxologico Italiano IRCCS, Psychology Research Laboratory, Oggebbio, Italy

    Gian Mauro Manzoni & Gianluca Castelnuovo

  4. Faculty of Psychology, eCampus University, Novedrate, Como, Italy

    Gian Mauro Manzoni

  5. Department of Psychology, Catholic University, Milan, Italy

    Gianluca Castelnuovo

Authors
  1. Claudio Imperatori
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Mariantonietta Fabbricatore
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. David Lester
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Gian Mauro Manzoni
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Gianluca Castelnuovo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Giulia Raimondi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Marco Innamorati
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Claudio Imperatori.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Informed consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

Additional information

This article is part of topical collection on Food Addiction.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Imperatori, C., Fabbricatore, M., Lester, D. et al. Psychometric properties of the modified Yale Food Addiction Scale Version 2.0 in an Italian non-clinical sample. Eat Weight Disord 24, 37–45 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40519-018-0607-x

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40519-018-0607-x

Keywords

Search

Navigation