Cultural adaptation and psychometric characteristics of the Weight Bias Internalization Scale (WBIS)

This study aimed to carry out the cultural adaptation and present initial evidence about the psychometric characteristics of the Weight Bias Internalization Scale in the Brazilian context, through three steps: translation, semantic validation, and pretest. The results indicated that the synthesis of the translations, performed by two independent translators, was considered unsatisfactory and it was necessary to obtain a new consensus version with an Expert Committee. This last one was back-translated and used in semantic validation with 18 people, confirming the proper understanding of the items after alterations in two of them. In the pretest, with 54 people, Cronbach's alpha was considered adequate (0.833), with floor and ceiling effects observed in nine and four items, respectively. Pearson's correlation coefficient showed the presence of strong and moderate correlations. The measurement of weight bias internalization represents an important tool to support more effective therapeutic strategies with a view to comprehensive and humanized care.