Purpose of the Scale

The aim of this scale is to measure cognitive distortion in patients with eating disorders.

Scale Analysis

The TSFS-17 scale was developed by Shafran and colleagues in 1999, consisting of 34 items, divided into two parts of 17 questions each, which assess cognitive distortion.
In the first part, the patient is asked whether they agree with statements such as:
“Thinking about eating chocolate is almost as unacceptable to me as actually eating chocolate.”
In the second part, the patient is asked what it means to them to think about eating a “forbidden” food.

Scoring and Statistical Analysis

Scoring is based on a 5-point scale, from 0 (Not at all) to 4 (Completely).
The total score is calculated by summing all responses, ranging from 0 to 136.
A higher score indicates a greater degree of cognitive distortion.

Validity

Correlations with other scales demonstrated satisfactory validity.

Reliability

The internal consistency coefficient (Cronbach’s α) showed excellent reliability, with a value of 0.92.

References

Coelho, J. S., Roefs, A., & Jansen, A. (2010). The role of food-cue exposure and negative affect in the experience of thought-shape fusion. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 41(4), 409–417.
Lobera, I. J., Santed, M. A., Shafran, R., Santiago, M. J., & Estébanez, S. (2012). Psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the Thought-Shape Fusion Questionnaire. The Spanish Journal of Psychology, 15(1), 410–423.
Shafran, R., & Robinson, P. (2004). Thought-shape fusion in eating disorders. British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 43(4), 399–408.
Wyssen, A., Debbeler, L. J., Meyer, A. H., Coelho, J. S., Humbel, N., Schuck, K., … & Munsch, S. (2018). Relevance of the Thought–Shape Fusion Trait Questionnaire for healthy women and women presenting symptoms of eating disorders and mixed mental disorders. Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy, 25(4), 601–607.