Strengths and weaknesses of the German translation of the Inflexible Eating Questionnaire and of eating disorder assessment in general

Abstract

Objective: The present article introduces the German translation of the Inflexible Eating Questionnaire (IEQ-G), performs a psychometric evaluation, and explores the relationship of Inflexible Eating to the subscales of the Eating Disorder Examination-Questionnaire (EDE-Q) and Obsessive-Compulsive (OC) symptoms.

Methods: The cross-sectional study was carried out in the German-speaking area. A paper and pencil survey was completed by 612 females and 442 males of the general population.

Results: SEM analyses showed that the IEQ-G allows for calculating a total score and invariance tests were mostly promising. As a side result, the original 4-factorial structure of the EDE-Q could not be replicated, but a 3 dimensional solution proved convincing. From a psychometric point of view, the IEQ-G outperformed the EDE-Q. On a latent level, Inflexible Eating was remarkably strong related to OC-symptoms and the EDE-Q subscales.

Discussion: The detail analyses revealed that Eating Disorder assessment in general lacks subgroup-specific aspects, for instance, regarding gender or dietary preferences, important for early diagnosis and screening of ED. The IEQ-G proved applicable in a German speaking adult population and recommends itself for cross-cultural studies.

Keywords: Eating Disorder Examination - Questionnaire; IEQ; Inflexible Eating; SEM; invariance; screening.