Factor structure, reliability and validation of the Japanese version of the Body Perception Questionnaire-Body Awareness Very Short Form (BPQ-BAVSF-J)

Abstract

The present study aimed to develop and validate the Japanese version of the Body Perception Questionnaire-Body Awareness Very Short Form (BPQ-BAVSF-J). In Study 1, we conducted a cross-sectional survey of 358 crowdsourced participants and 296 university students. We conducted an exploratory factor analysis and then conducted a confirmatory factor analysis. The results of the factor analysis indicated that the BPQ-BAVSF-J has a unidimensional structure with sufficient reliability. Additionally, consistent with the original version, the BPQ-BAVSF-J had a positive correlation with somatosensory amplification and physical stress. Thus, it was shown that the BPQ-BAVSF-J has adequate validity. In Study 2, we conducted a cross-sectional survey of 305 and 295 crowdsourced participants and then compared the BPQ-BAVSF-J and the Japanese version of the Body Perception Questionnaire-Body Awareness Short Form (BPQ-BASF-J). The results of Study 2 showed that both the BPQ-BAVSF-J and the BPQ-BASF-J had the same level of correlation with the validity scale. These results suggest that the BPQ-BAVSF-J can measure interoceptive awareness as well as the BPQ-BASF-J, which has a larger number of items. In study 3, we conducted a two-wave survey with a one-month interval (N＝68) and confirmed that the BPQ-BAVSF-J has sufficient test-retest reliability.