Spanish version of the Objectified Body Consciousness Scale (OBCS): results from two samples of female university students / Versión española de la Objectified Body Consciousness Scale (OBCS): resultados correspondientes a dos muestras de estudiantes universitarias

Abstract

Self-objectification happens when people internalize a view of themselves as an object or collection of body parts. Two studies were conducted to validate the Spanish version of the Objectified Body Consciousness Scale (OBCS). This scale assesses self-objectification through three components: body surveillance, body shame and appearance control beliefs in women. In Study 1 and Study 2, 218 and 201 female undergraduate students, respectively, responded to the Spanish version of this scale and other related measures. In Study 2, they also reported on their emotions after being exposed to an objectifying scenario. The three subscales of the Spanish version of the OBCS showed acceptable indices of internal consistency (ranging between α = .68 to .84), and the confirmatory factor analysis showed a three-factor solution to be the most appropriate. Adequate convergent validity was found with respect to the Self-Objectification Questionnaire (SOQ) and other variables such as self-esteem, other-directedness, hostile sexism and enjoyment of sexualization. These findings suggest that the Spanish version of the OBCS is a satisfactory measure of college women’s self-objectification.