Center for Research in Neuropsychology and Cognitive Behavioral Intervention

The BIVES is a 12-item scale assesses childhood or adolescence experiences of bullying and teasing related to physical appearance by peers (friends or colleagues) or by parents (or other caregivers). Experiences involve direct (e.g., name-calling, being made fun of, or criticism) and indirect (e.g., rejection, exclusion, being commented about) forms of body image-related victimization experiences. The instructions ask participants to recall experiences during their childhood and adolescence of being the target of negative interactions related to their physical appearance, and to indicate their frequency (Part A). Participants are also asked to indicate the extent to which each experience (if it occurred) affected/upset them (Part B). Part A and Part B are rated using a 5-point Likert scale ranging, respectively, from 1 = Never to 5 = Very frequently and from 1 = Nothing to 5 = A lot (total score for both parts is derived from the mean of all item scores and ranges between 1 and 5).