Development and validation of the mindful eating scale (mind-eat scale) in a general population

Marion Van Beekum; Rebecca Shankland; Angélique Rodhain; Margaux Robert; Camille Marchand; Athéna Herry; Clémentine Prioux; Mathilde Touvier; Marie Barday; Roxane Turgon; Antoine Avignon; Christophe Leys; Sandrine Péneau

doi:10.1016/j.appet.2024.107398

Development and validation of the mindful eating scale (mind-eat scale) in a general population

Appetite. 2024 Aug 1:199:107398. doi: 10.1016/j.appet.2024.107398. Epub 2024 May 6.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Université Sorbonne Paris Nord and Université Paris Cité, Inserm, INRAE, CNAM, Center of Research in Epidemiology and StatisticS (CRESS), Nutritional Epidemiology Research Team (EREN), F-93017, Bobigny, France; University of Montpellier, Montpellier Research in Management (MRM), Place Eugène Bataillon - CC 19001 - Bâtiment 19, 34095, Montpellier, France; Institute Desbrest of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Montpellier, INSERM, 34090, Montpellier, France. Electronic address: marion.vanbeekum@chu-montpellier.fr.
² Department of Psychology, Univ. Lumière Lyon 2, DIPHE, Bron Cedex, France; Institut Universitaire de France, France.
³ University of Montpellier, Montpellier Research in Management (MRM), Place Eugène Bataillon - CC 19001 - Bâtiment 19, 34095, Montpellier, France.
⁴ Université Sorbonne Paris Nord and Université Paris Cité, Inserm, INRAE, CNAM, Center of Research in Epidemiology and StatisticS (CRESS), Nutritional Epidemiology Research Team (EREN), F-93017, Bobigny, France.
⁵ Department of Psychology, Univ. Lumière Lyon 2, DIPHE, Bron Cedex, France.
⁶ Institute Desbrest of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Montpellier, INSERM, 34090, Montpellier, France; Nutrition-Diabetes Department, University Hospital of Montpellier, 34090, Montpellier, France.
⁷ Faculty of Psychology, Educational Sciences, and Speech and Language Therapy, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Avenue Franklin Roosevelt, 50 - CP191, 1050, Brussels, Belgium.

PMID: 38710449
DOI: 10.1016/j.appet.2024.107398

Abstract

Background: Mindful eating is a concept that is increasingly being used to promote healthy eating. Observational studies have suggested associations with healthier eating behaviors, lower weight status, and favorable cardiovascular biomarkers. However, existing scales assessing mindful eating have some limitations. Our study aimed to develop and validate a scale assessing the level of mindful eating in a general population.

Methods: The Mind-Eat Scale was developed in four main steps: 1. Generating an initial item pool covering all aspects of mindful eating; 2. Reviewing items with experts and naive individuals; 3. Administering the scale to a large and representative sample from the NutriNet-Santé cohort (N = 3102); 4. Conducting psychometric analyses. Construct validity was assessed using exploratory (EFA) (N₁ = 1302) and confirmatory (CFA) (N₂ = 1302, N₃ = 498) factor analyses. Content, discriminant, convergent, and divergent validity, internal consistency, and test-retest reliability were examined.

Results: The initial pool of 95 items was refined to 24 items using EFA. The EFA highlighted six dimensions: Awareness, Non-reactivity, Openness, Gratitude, Non-judgement, and Hunger/Satiety, consisting of four items per dimension. CFAs showed a good fit for first and second-order models. Adequate content validity was confirmed. Discriminant, convergent, and divergent validity were supported by significant differences between subgroups of individuals, and correlations with eating behaviors and psychological well-being scales. The Mind-Eat Scale showed good reliability for all six dimensions, with high McDonald's ω and adequate intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC).

Conclusions: This study validated the first tool assessing a total mindful eating score and its sub-dimensions in a general population. This scale can be an asset for clinical and epidemiological research on dietary behavior and related chronic diseases.

Keywords: Eating behavior; Mindful eating; Mindfulness; Questionnaire; Validation.

Publication types

Validation Study

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Adult
Aged
Cohort Studies
Diet, Healthy / psychology
Factor Analysis, Statistical
Feeding Behavior* / psychology
Female
Humans
Hunger
Male
Middle Aged
Mindfulness*
Psychometrics*
Reproducibility of Results
Surveys and Questionnaires / standards
Young Adult