Taxometric Analysis of the Reduced Brazilian Adult Attachment Scale (EBRAPEG-A)

The literature on attachment is unclear regarding which level of measurement is more appropriate for this construct. This study is aimed at assessing the measurement level of the EBRAPEG-A scale. As a secondary objective, the original 93-item EBRAPEG-A was reduced using data-driven methods and this new reduced version was compared to another version found in the literature with 34 items. A total of 808 Brazilians aged between 18 and 67 years, 82.4% women, participated in this study. The data-driven reduction method generated a reduced scale with 27 items, with factor scores strongly correlating with the 34-item version. The taxometric analysis of the 34-item version showed a small tendency towards a dimensional model, but the taxometric analysis of the 27-item scale was inconclusive. We discuss how both reduced versions of the EBRAPEG-A can be used to assess the attachment construct as a dimensional variable and what to expect from future studies.