Validation and psychometric properties of the Behavioral Inhibition and Activation Systems motivational scale in the Brazilian population

Carver and White's Behavioral Inhibition System (BIS)/ Behavioral Activation System (BAS) questionnaire is the most commonly used instrument in the domain of motivation. The BIS refers to behaviors associated to punishment avoidance and the BAS refers to behaviors related to reward. The main goal of this study was to translate and validate the BIS/BAS scale to Brazilian Portuguese. First, we translated the questionnaire to Brazilian Portuguese and twelve proficient bilingual volunteers responded to both versions of the questionnaire. Thereafter, we validated the Brazilian Portuguese version of the questionnaire using an online platform that also collected data on sex, age, years of education and occupational status (n = 568). The Confirmatory Factor Analyses showed a better fit with a five- rather than a four-factor model. The eigenvalues of the Principal Component Analysis showed a five-factor solution, grouping factors within the following subscales: BIS anxiety, BIS fear, BAS drive, BAS reward responsiveness and BAS fun seeking. The convergent and discriminant validity was observed as expected: the BIS correlated with Negative affect and the BAS correlated with Positive affect. The relationship between the TIPI and the BIS/BAS questionnaire suggests that the BAS fun seeking has features of impulsivity and the BIS Fear has features of neuroticism (n = 229). The questionnaire showed stability over a period of one month (n = 45). Results demonstrated a good adaptability of the BIS/BAS scale in the Brazilian population and revealed the importance instrument in the field of motivation.