Details & Validation Information for Survey Tools

​​Subjective/Self-Report Assessment Tool

A modified and validated version of the RESIDE questionnaire originally developed by Giles-Cortes et al. (2006) was used to evaluate self-report time spent doing light, moderate and vigorous activities. The RESIDE questionnaire captures both leisure-time activities as well as activities of daily living. A total physical activity score is derived from 5 subs-cores, which capture the amount of time spent doing the following activities: (1) walking for non-work activities, (2) walking for work activities, (3) moderate leisure time activities (other than walking), (4) vigorous leisure time activities (other than walking) and (5) vigorous activities during the workday.​​

Objective/Measured Assessment Tool

Pedometers were used to obtain an objective measure of physical activity. To assess steps/day, at the enrollment visit participants were instructed to wear an Omron HJ720ITC pedometer (Omron Healthcare, Bannockburn, IL) for at least 1 week during the next month, though they were encouraged to wear it daily (participants could observe step counts.) Pedometer steps for the baseline assessment were downloaded at the first counseling session. Steps/day were calculated as the mean of daily steps for all days of ≥ 500 steps/day during the preceding 31 days. Pedometer data was collected from 291 participants at their first counseling session; of those participants, 125 were African American women. Participants were included in our analysis only if they had a minimum of 3 days of wear with 500 or more steps on each of those days, which is considered to be a sufficient standard to estimate walking behaviors.

The Multiple Caregiving Measurement Instrument (MCMI) developed by Samuel-Hodge et al. (2005) (α = 0.72 – 0.76, by subscale) was used to assess barriers to engaging in healthy behaviors associated with the multiple-caregiver role. The full instrument consists of 10 questions using a 4-point likert-type rating scale ranging from “disagree a little” to “agree a lot”. Results from the full instrument can be reported as two sub-scores. The first score (7 questions, possible score range 6-24) captures the degree to which the respondent identifies with common characteristics of the MCR. The second score (3 questions possible score range 3-24) assesses barriers associated with the MCR. Our questionnaire only included the 3 questions assessing barriers.

An 11-item selection (of 34 total questions) of the Stereotypic Roles for Black Women Scale (SRBWS) developed by Thomas et al. (2004) was used to assess how much respondents relate with stereotypical behaviors associated by the SR. Participants were asked how much they agree or disagree with a series of statements using a 5-item likert scale ranging from “strongly disagree” to “strongly agree”. Examples of statements from the “Superwoman” subscale include “Black women have to be strong to survive” and “If I fall apart, I will be a failure”.

The use of unhealthy eating behaviors as a coping response to stress was measured using the 7-item Giscombe-Woods “Using Food to Cope Scale” (UFTCS). This measure is not designed to assess more severe, pathological eating behaviors such as binge eating, but rather to capture the more commonplace, stress coping responses involving food. Examples of behaviors captured in this scale include: treating yourself to comfort foods to relieve stress; eating in the absence of hunger; and eating prepared foods due to perceived lack of time to cook. The tool assesses the frequency of specific behaviors over the past month using a 5-point likert scale. The scale has been demonstrated to have good internal reliability among adult African American women (α = 0.82) as well as adult African American men and women with pre-diabetes (α = 0.82). 

Symptoms of BED were assessed using the Binge Eating Scale (BES), a 16-item self-administered questionnaire that assesses the severity of BED symptoms. Gormally et al. (1982) found the scale to have high internal consistency (as measured through a chi-squared test for significance, all 16 items > 9.1, p < 0.01). The BES has also shown to have high internal consistency in bariatric surgery patients (α = 0.87) and in obese women (α = 0.89). Scores between 18 and 26 suggest the presence of moderate bingeing behavior and scores greater than 27 may be an indication of severe/clinical binge eating.

Symptoms of NES were assessed using the Night Eating Questionnaire (NEQ) developed by Allison et al. (2008), the NEQ is a 17-item, self-administered likert-type scale with acceptable internal consistency (α = 0.70) among bariatric surgery patients and has been used 61 in studies with African American women. Scores can range between 0 – 52 with scores > 25 being “suggestive of NES” and scores > 30 being s “strong indicator” of the presence of NES.

The Sallis Social Support Surveys for Diet (SS-D) and Exercise (SS-E) Behaviors204 are widely-used 23-item, self-administered questionnaires with acceptable internal consistency (α = 0.80 – 0.87 (friend support for diet, by subscale), α = 0.83 – 0.87 (family support for diet, by subscale), α = 0.84 (friend support for exercise), α = 0.61 – 0.91 (family support for exercise, by subscale). The surveys have been used in several studies with African American women.