title: A measure of family eating habits: initial psychometric properties using the profile pattern approach (PPA).
abstract: Although it seems likely that family characteristics and eating habits are a major factor in the development of eating behaviors, there are no self-report measures that examine how individuals view their family's eating habits. Seventy-one women ages 18-22 were recruited from a private university in a large northeastern city and asked to complete a short questionnaire packet consisting of demographic questions, the newly developed Family Eating Habits Questionnaire (FEHQ) and the Eating Inventory (EI). Internal consistency and test-retest reliability of the FEHQ was established. Significant associations were found between the FEHQ and the EI, indicating convergent validity for the FEHQ. Further validation was conducted using a novel statistical technique, the profile pattern approach (PPA). The results of the present study are limited by the restricted sample characteristic of a university setting. However, our findings show that the family eating habits' measure appears psychometrically sound. A future aim will be to continue validating this instrument in other samples, particularly to determine its predictive value.
authors.affiliation: Fordham University, Department of Psychology, 441 East Fordham Road, Bronx, NY 10458, USA.
authors.forename: Natalie
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Klempel
authors.forename: Se-Kang
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Monique
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wilson
authors.forename: Rachel A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Annunziato
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D004032:Diet; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology*; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires / Q000592:standards*; D055815:Young Adult