Abstract
BACKGROUND: The Binge Eating Scale (BES) questionnaire is a self-administered instrument developed to identify binge eaters. The aim of this study was to assess the validity of the Malay language version of BES as a screening instrument for binge eating. A cut-off point of 17 is taken as comparable to the Structured Clinical Interview for the DSM-IV patient version (SCID-I/P), the gold standard for the diagnosis of Binge Eating Disorder. METHOD: The questionnaire was structured from the English version of the original scale which has 16 items. The sample was obtained from outpatients and healthy adult volunteers at a teaching hospital. After completion of BES, the participants were interviewed with the SCID-I/P. The interviewer was blinded to the BES score. RESULTS: The Malay version of BES yielded a sensitivity of 84.6%, specificity of 94.9%, a positive predictive value of 81.8%, a negative predictive value of 95.7%. Area under the curve was 0.95 (95% confidence interval: 0.90-0.99). The results of factor analysis indicated a two factor structure of feelings/cognition and behavioural manifestation of binge eating. Internal consistency, Cronbach's alpha was 0.89. CONCLUSION: The BES performed satisfactorily as a valid instrument for screening of binge eating among Malay-speaking population.