Estudio preliminar de las propiedades psicométricas de la escala de comparación de apariencia física hacía arriba y hacía abajo

Resumen

Following social comparison theory of Festinger, the social comparison is essential for self-knowledge and self-assessment feature, in addition to the development and personal self-realization. In the field of physical activity, the social comparison can influence in the physical practice commitment. The aim of this study was to adapt the Scale Comparison of Physical Appearance Up and Down to the Spanish and to explore its psychometric properties. Participated 365 chileans university students (200 men and 165 women) between 18 and 42 years (Medad= 20.83, SD= 2.56). The results of confirmatory factor analysis showed adequate fit indices of the model. In addition, the factor structure was invariant by gender. High levels of internal consistency and temporal stability, for the factors that make up the scale, were obtained. In conclusion, the scale is shown as a valid instrument, invariant by gender and reliable in a sample of chilean university. Future studies should verify the validity of the instrument in other samples and contexts.