The development of a body comparison measure: the CoSS

Purpose This study reports on the development and validation of a brief and widely applicable measure of body comparison (the Comparison of Self-Scale—CoSS), which is a maintaining feature of eating disorders.

Methods A sample of 412 adults completed the CoSS, an existing measure of aspects of body comparison, and eating pathology and associated states. Test–retest reliability was examined over 2 weeks.

Results Exploratory factor analysis showed that 22 CoSS items loaded onto two factors, resulting in two scales—Appearance Comparison and Social Comparison—with strong internal consistency and test–retest reliability.

Conclusions In clinical terms, the CoSS was superior to the existing measure of body comparison in accounting for depression and anxiety. Given that it is a relatively brief measure, the CoSS could be useful in the routine assessment of body comparison, and in formulating and treating individuals with body image concerns. However, the measure awaits full clinical validation.