Development of a new body image assessment scale in urban Cameroon: an anthropological approach.

摘要

OBJECTIVE: Develop and validate body image scales (BIS) presenting real human bodies adapted to the macroscopic phenotype of urban Cameroonian populations. DESIGN: Quantitative and qualitative analysis. SETTING: Yaounde, capital city of Cameroon. PARTICIPANTS: Four samples with balanced sex-ratio: the first (n=16) aged 18 to 65 years (qualitative study), the second (n=30) aged 25 to 40 years (photo database), the third (n=47) and fourth (n=181), > or =18 years (validation study). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Construct validity, test retest reliability, concurrent and convergent validity of BIS. RESULTS: Body image scales present six Cameroonians of each sex arranged according to main body mass index (BMI) categories: underweight (<18.5 kg/m2), normal (18.5-24.9 kg/m2), overweight (25-29.9 kg/m2), obesity class I (30-34.9 kg/m2), obesity class II (35-39.9 kg/m2), and obesity class III (> or =40 kg/m2). Test-retest reliability correlations for current body size (CBS), desired body size and current desirable discrepancy (body self-satisfaction index) on BIS were never below .90. Plus, for the concurrent validity, we observed a significant correlation (r=0.67, P<.01) between measured BMI and CBS. Finally, the convergent validity between BIS and a female African American silhouettes scale, for different dimensions of body size perceptions, is acceptable. CONCLUSIONS: Body image scales are adapted to the phenotypic characteristics of urban Cameroonian populations. They are reliable and valid to assess body size perceptions and culturally adapted to the Cameroonian context.