One-year temporal stability and predictive and incremental validity of the Body, Eating, and Exercise Comparison Orientation Measure (BEECOM) among college women

• A measure of comparison dimensions associated with eating pathology was evaluated.
• The measure is called the Body, Eating, and Exercise Comparison Orientation Measure (BEECOM).
• One-year temporal stability was high for the BEECOM total and subscale scores.
• The BEECOM prospectively predicted body dissatisfaction and eating pathology.
• Results regarding the incremental validity of the BEECOM were more mixed.

This study examined the one-year temporal stability and the predictive and incremental validity of the Body, Eating, and Exercise Comparison Measure (BEECOM) in a sample of 237 college women who completed study measures at two time points about one year apart. One-year temporal stability was high for the BEECOM total and subscale (i.e., Body, Eating, and Exercise Comparison Orientation) scores. Additionally, the BEECOM exhibited predictive validity in that it accounted for variance in body dissatisfaction and eating disorder symptomatology one year later. These findings held even after controlling for body mass index and existing measures of social comparison orientation. However, results regarding the incremental validity of the BEECOM, or its ability to predict change in these constructs over time, were more mixed. Overall, this study demonstrated additional psychometric properties of the BEECOM among college women, further establishing the usefulness of this measure for more comprehensively assessing eating disorder-related social comparison.