Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the Male Body Attitudes Scale (MBAS) among Spanish Adolescent Males

Abstract

The aim of this study was to examine the factor structure of the Male Body Attitudes Scale (MBAS) among a sample of 212 adolescent males by conducting a confirmatory factor analysis. The data revealed that while muscularity and low body fat factors were appropriate for the male sample, the height factor was not supported. The composite MBAS-Spanish version (MBAS-S) and its two factors had high internal consistency and were not significantly related to the traditionally used measure of body image (Eating Disorder Inventory–Body Dissatisfaction [BD]), confirming that this subscale only appears to evaluate female body concerns. Correlations with psychological well-being variables (anxiety, emotional regulation, and self-esteem) supported the concurrent validity of the instrument. These findings provide further evidence in support of the hypothesis that BD in males has been inappropriately evaluated by measures designed specifically for females. Despite the fact that our results did not replicate the original factorial structure of the instrument, the MBAS-S presents adequate psychometric properties and can be considered as a valuable assessment tool for BD among adolescent males.