Conspiracy theories are ubiquitous when it comes to explaining political events and societal phenomena. Individuals differ not only in the degree to which they believe in specific conspiracy ...theories, but also in their general susceptibility to explanations based on such theories, that is, their conspiracy mentality. We present the Conspiracy Mentality Questionnaire (CMQ), an instrument designed to efficiently assess differences in the generic tendency to engage in conspiracist ideation within and across cultures. The CMQ is available in English, German, and Turkish. In four studies, we examined the CMQ's factorial structure, reliability, measurement equivalence across cultures, and its convergent, discriminant, and predictive validity. Analyses based on a cross-cultural sample (Study 1a; N = 7,766) supported the conceptualization of conspiracy mentality as a one-dimensional construct across the three language versions of the CMQ that is stable across time (Study 1b; N = 141). Multi-group confirmatory factor analysis demonstrated cross-cultural measurement equivalence of the CMQ items. The instrument could therefore be used to examine differences in conspiracy mentality between European, North American, and Middle Eastern cultures. In Studies 2-4 (total N = 476), we report (re-)analyses of three datasets demonstrating the validity of the CMQ in student and working population samples in the UK and Germany. First, attesting to its convergent validity, the CMQ was highly correlated with another measure of generic conspiracy belief. Second, the CMQ showed patterns of meaningful associations with personality measures (e.g., Big Five dimensions, schizotypy), other generalized political attitudes (e.g., social dominance orientation and right-wing authoritarianism), and further individual differences (e.g., paranormal belief, lack of socio-political control). Finally, the CMQ predicted beliefs in specific conspiracy theories over and above other individual difference measures.
The psychology of conspiracy theory beliefs is not yet well understood, although research indicates that there are stable individual differences in conspiracist ideation - individuals' general ...tendency to engage with conspiracy theories. Researchers have created several short self-report measures of conspiracist ideation. These measures largely consist of items referring to an assortment of prominent conspiracy theories regarding specific real-world events. However, these instruments have not been psychometrically validated, and this assessment approach suffers from practical and theoretical limitations. Therefore, we present the Generic Conspiracist Beliefs (GCB) scale: a novel measure of individual differences in generic conspiracist ideation. The scale was developed and validated across four studies. In Study 1, exploratory factor analysis of a novel 75-item measure of non-event-based conspiracist beliefs identified five conspiracist facets. The 15-item GCB scale was developed to sample from each of these themes. Studies 2, 3, and 4 examined the structure and validity of the GCB, demonstrating internal reliability, content, criterion-related, convergent and discriminant validity, and good test-retest reliability. In sum, this research indicates that the GCB is a psychometrically sound and practically useful measure of conspiracist ideation, and the findings add to our theoretical understanding of conspiracist ideation as a monological belief system unpinned by a relatively small number of generic assumptions about the typicality of conspiratorial activity in the world.
A growing body of literature has demonstrated the utility of a dimensional perspective on mental disorders. The current study aims to determine the psychometric properties of the Catatonia Spectrum ...(CS), a new questionnaire specifically tailored to assess the spectrum of catatonia, from full blown forms to subthreshold ones.
86 adults with at least three symptom criteria for catatonia according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), 81 adults affected by borderline personality disorder (BPD), 104 adults with a diagnosis of major depressive disorder (MDD), and 105 subjects without mental disorders (CTL), were recruited from six Italian University Departments of Psychiatry and administered the: Bush-Francis Catatonia Rating Scale (BFCRS), Bush-Francis Catatonia Screening Instrument (BFCSI), and CS.
CS scale demonstrated a high level of internal consistency and excellent test-retest reliability for total and domain scores. CS domain scores were positively and significantly correlated with each other (
< 0.001) with Pearson's coefficients ranging from 0.337 to 0.663. All the CS domain scores were highly correlated with the CS total score. The correlation coefficients between CS and alternative measures of catatonia appeared all significant and positive. Significant differences among diagnostic groups on both CS domains and total scores were found. CS total scores increased significantly and progressively from the CTL, to the MDD and the BDP group, up to the catatonia group, which reported the highest value.
The CS showed excellent internal consistency and test-retest reliability and strong convergent validity with alternative dimensional measures of catatonia. The questionnaire performed differently across the four diagnostic groups, with an increasing score gradient from healthy controls to patients with MDD, BPD and up to the catatonia group.
Though several questionnaires on self-care and regimen adherence have been introduced, the evaluations do not always report consistent and substantial correlations with measures of glycaemic control. ...Small ability to explain variance in HbA1c constitutes a significant limitation of an instrument's use for scientific purposes as well as clinical practice. In order to assess self-care activities which can predict glycaemic control, the Diabetes Self-Management Questionnaire (DSMQ) was designed.
A 16 item questionnaire to assess self-care activities associated with glycaemic control was developed, based on theoretical considerations and a process of empirical improvements. Four subscales, 'Glucose Management' (GM), 'Dietary Control' (DC), 'Physical Activity' (PA), and 'Health-Care Use' (HU), as well as a 'Sum Scale' (SS) as a global measure of self-care were derived. To evaluate its psychometric quality, 261 patients with type 1 or 2 diabetes were assessed with the DSMQ and an established analogous scale, the Summary of Diabetes Self-Care Activities Measure (SDSCA). The DSMQ's item and scale characteristics as well as factorial and convergent validity were analysed, and its convergence with HbA1c was compared to the SDSCA.
The items showed appropriate characteristics (mean item-total-correlation: 0.46 ± 0.12; mean correlation with HbA1c: -0.23 ± 0.09). Overall internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha) was good (0.84), consistencies of the subscales were acceptable (GM: 0.77; DC: 0.77; PA: 0.76; HU: 0.60). Principal component analysis indicated a four factor structure and confirmed the designed scale structure. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated appropriate fit of the four factor model. The DSMQ scales showed significant convergent correlations with their parallel SDSCA scales (GM: 0.57; DC: 0.52; PA: 0.58; HU: n/a; SS: 0.57) and HbA1c (GM: -0.39; DC: -0.30; PA: -0.15; HU: -0.22; SS: -0.40). All correlations with HbA1c were significantly stronger than those obtained with the SDSCA.
This study provides preliminary evidence that the DSMQ is a reliable and valid instrument and enables an efficient assessment of self-care behaviours associated with glycaemic control. The questionnaire should be valuable for scientific analyses as well as clinical use in both type 1 and type 2 diabetes patients.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
La présente étude vise à dresser le portrait des pratiques adoptées par les chercheurs francophones à travers les années pour assurer la traduction, puis la validation d'un instrument de mesure. ...Soixante-sept articles publiés entre 1989 et 2019 dans la Revue canadienne des sciences du comportement et la Revue québécoise de psychologie ont été sélectionnés pour mener cette recherche. Considérant les différentes étapes de la démarche proposée par Vallerand (1989), une grille d'analyse comprenant plus d'une vingtaine de critères de classification a été élaborée, puis utilisée pour analyser chacune des études recensées. De façon générale, les résultats indiquent une certaine diversité dans les pratiques adoptées par les chercheurs francophones pour assurer la traduction et la validation d'un instrument de mesure. Plus particulièrement, seul un faible nombre d'études semble avoir procédé à un prétest, évalué les compétences en matière de bilinguisme des traducteurs, évalué la validité de contenu, ou encore établi des normes. Sur la base des constats, l'analyse des pratiques privilégiées par les chercheurs permet de formuler certains conseils et recommandations afin de guider les futurs travaux de recherche destinés à la traduction et à la validation d'un instrument de mesure. Des réflexions concernant les pratiques existantes sont aussi discutées en guise de conclusion.
The purpose of this study is to provide a portrait of the practices adopted by Francophone researchers over the years to ensure the translation and validation of psychometric instruments. Covering the period from 1989 to 2019, 67 articles published in the Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science and the Revue québécoise de psychologie were considered for this study. Bearing in mind the different steps proposed by Vallerand (1989), an analysis grid comprising more than 20 classification criteria was first developed for the purposes of this research, and then used to analyze each of the identified studies. Overall, the results indicate some differences in the practices adopted by Francophone researchers to ensure translation and validation of an instrument. More specifically, only a small number of studies appear to have conducted a pretest, assessed bilingual skills of translators, assessed content validity, or established norms. Based on the results, the analysis of the practices favored by researchers allows to formulate various recommendations to guide future research aimed to translate and validate psychometric instruments. In conclusion, reflections on current practices are also discussed.
Intérêt public
La traduction d'outils de mesure en français est chose courante chez les chercheurs en psychologie. La présente étude dresse un portrait des différentes pratiques adoptées par les chercheurs, entre 1989 et 2019, pour assurer la traduction d'un instrument de mesure en français. Les résultats à cette étude lèvent le voile sur la grande diversité qui existe dans les pratiques utilisées par les chercheurs francophones.
The Adult Autism Subthreshold Spectrum (AdAS Spectrum) is a recently developed instrument tailored to assess the broad range of full-threshold as well as sub-threshold manifestations related to the ...autism spectrum. Although it has proved to be a valuable instrument for quantitative assessment of autistic symptoms, the AdAS Spectrum still lacks validated diagnostic thresholds.
The aim of this study was to define the best cut-off scores of the AdAS Spectrum for determining the presence of subthreshold autistic traits as well as a clinically significant autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
Our sample was composed of 39 patients with full-blown ASD, 73 subjects with autistic traits, and 150 healthy controls. Subjects were evaluated by trained psychiatrists, who performed a clinical diagnosis according to DSM-5 and then assessed with the AdAS Spectrum and the Autism Spectrum Quotient.
Our results showed that the most discriminant cut-off scores were 70 for identifying subjects with full-blown ASD, and 43 for determining the presence of significant autistic traits.
The threshold values proposed here showed satisfying levels of specificity and sensibility, as well as a good agreement with the diagnosis according to DSM-5 criteria, confirming the validity of the AdAS Spectrum as a psychometric tool for measuring ASD-related conditions in the clinical and general population.
The Camouflaging Autistic Traits Questionnaire (CAT-Q) is an instrument recently developed and validated in English for measuring social camouflaging. While increasing research is focusing on ...camouflaging behaviours often used for masking autistic traits in social contexts, the CAT-Q remains the only self-report instrument in this field. We aimed to validate the Italian version of the CAT-Q, further testing its validity and reliability in a large Italian University population (N = 2439). We employed the Adult Autism Subthreshold Spectrum (AdAS Spectrum) for assessing autism spectrum conditions. The CAT-Q demonstrated excellent internal consistency and test-retest reliability, as well as strong correlations with the AdAS Spectrum. Our results confirm that the CAT-Q is a valuable instrument for evaluating social camouflaging.
•The Italian version of the CAT-Q was validated in a large University population.•The CAT-Q, Italian version, demonstrated excellent internal consistency and test-retest reliability.•The CAT-Q was strongly correlated with the AdAS Spectrum.
Evidence-based practice (EBP) has, in the last decade, gained global prominence in health care professions because it provides the framework for lifelong and self-directed learning. These traits are ...crucial for the continued provision of quality health care. This study sets out to develop a culturally appropriate instrument to measure physiotherapists' knowledge, beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors relative to the use of EBP and establish the instruments' psychometric properties. A 53-item EBP inventory that consisted of seven parts sociodemographic, EBP competence and behaviors, perceived knowledge of EBP, perceived skills and resources, attitudes about EBP, and barriers related to the use of EBP was created. Theinstrument was administered to 25 physiotherapists within a two-week interval on two occasions. The Flesch-Kincaid Reading Ease and Flesch-Kincaid scores for the instrument were 49.5 and 8.3, respectively. Its Cronbach alpha range from "fair" (0.333, p<.001) to "almost perfect" (0.837, p<.001). The test-retest (stability) scores for the instrument parts were significantly (?2 = 4.738, p<.038) different for only one (competence on EBP) of the seven factors. The overall findings revealed the instrument is relatively easy to comprehend, highly stable, and internally consistent. The availability of this instrument will promote further studies of EBP in physiotherapy.
People's sexual experiences have a strong association with contraceptive satisfaction and continuation, but no measures exist to specifically assess contraceptive-related sexual acceptability.
This ...study developed and examined the psychometric properties of reliability, separation, and item fit of a new Contraceptive Sexual Acceptability (CSA) instrument.
Enrolled participants initiating a new contraceptive method from the HER Salt Lake longitudinal cohort study contributed baseline survey responses for scale development. The study included the Female Sexual Function Index, the New Sexual Satisfaction Scale, measures of physical and mood-related side effects, and self-reported perceptions of contraception's sexual impacts. Items from these measures' served as the basis for analyses. We analyzed responses using descriptive techniques and modeled using exploratory factor (EFA) and bifactor analyses (BFA). The Masters' Partial Credit Rasch method modeled reliability, separation, and item fit statistics. Here we evaluate (i) the reproducibility of relative measure location on the modeled linear latent variable, (ii) the number of statistically unique performance levels that can be distinguished by the measure, and (iii) the discrepancy between item responses and expectations of the model. Psychometric findings and theoretical models informed item reduction and final scale development.
We developed a 10-item Contraceptive Sexual Acceptability scale that exceeded the thresholds and sufficiently covered domains for use in contraceptive research and clinical settings.
Starting with data on 39-items from 4,387 individuals, we identified 10-items that best measured the CSA latent construct. The Rasch model included a total of 5 calibrations. We reduced items based on bifactor analysis and surpassed unidimensionality thresholds (OH = 0.84, ECV = 0.74) set a priori. The final items included questions with scaled responses about pleasure and orgasm (orgasm quality, orgasm frequency, giving partner pleasure), physical (arousal and function) and psychological (emotional connection, surrender) components, general questions of satisfaction and frequency, and a measure of perceived impact of contraception on sexual experiences in the previous 4 weeks.
The 10-item CSA instrument covers physical and psychological aspects of contraceptive sexual acceptability and can be used in clinical settings.
The unidimensional CSA instrument offers a brief, yet comprehensive assessment of sexual acceptability. Given the limited diversity of the sample, implementation of this scale in contraceptive research and clinical interactions should be evaluated and validated in more diverse settings.
Attuning to sexual acceptability could ultimately help contraceptive clients find methods that better meet their needs and preferences. Sanders JN, Kean J, Zhang C, et al. Measuring the Sexual Acceptability of Contraception: Psychometric Examination and Development of a Valid and Reliable Prospective Instrument. J Sex Med 2022;19:507-520.
Dimensions of Anger Reactions (DAR-5) is a brief 5-item instrument to assess experience of anger. We aimed to verify the DAR-5 as a screening instrument in the community.
A sample of 368 apparently ...healthy adults who attended an outpatient ambulatory facility self-reported on the DAR-5 scale, the Spielberger's State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory (STAXI), the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), and the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9). Indicators of reliability and validity were calculated to demonstrate the performance of the DAR-5.
According to the DAR-5, around half the respondents found themselves becoming angry with people or situations and reported persistent duration of anger. Antagonism towards others was the least frequently experienced anger (8.4%). The DAR-5 was found to be reliable and stable, showing a significant correlation with the BAI and PHQ-9 for both sexes. In confirmatory factor analysis, a one-dimensional structure of anger experience was demonstrated through salient fit statistics. A cut-off > 8 was the best threshold against STAXI for discriminating cases of anger, irrespective of sex.
The shortness of the DAR-5, along with its cost-effective applicability, qualifies this measuring tool as a useful instrument for inclusion in the routine assessment of anger reactions in the general population.
Key points
This is the first time the validity of DAR-5 has been demonstrated in a developing country.
The Portuguese version of DAR-5 has appropriate sensitivity and high specificity.
The DAR-5 demonstrated to be a reliable and stable instrument, irrespective of sex.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IJS, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
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