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Abstract Background One of the environments where people living with HIV/AIDS should feel safer is in the health care setting; however, scientific evidence has identified discriminatory behaviour on the part of health care professionals towards these people. The reduction or abolition of discriminatory practices requires, first of all, to know the attitudes of nursing students towards AIDS with tools appropriate to the socio-cultural context of the disease. The objectives of this study are to update the AIDS Attitudes Scale for Nursing Students (EASE) by adapting it to the sociocultural landscape and to analyse the reliability and structural validity of the new scale. Methods The results of the questionnaires answered by 213 undergraduate nursing students from the Faculty of Health Sciences of Ceuta (University of Granada) were analysed. Reliability (test-retest, n = 33) and validity (n = 180) tests were carried out. Results An exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis indicated that a four-factor model was the most parsimonious solution. Items were examined for their underlying relationships and labelled: professional practice, social integration, partner and family, and benevolent stigma. The new scale yielded a McDonald’s Omega coefficient (ω) of 0.893. Convergent validity was established for average variance extracted per factor greater than 0.5 and divergent validity when the variance retained by each factor is greater than the variance shared between them (average variance extracted per factor > ϕ2). Conclusions The new scale is a psychometrically sound instrument for assessing attitudes towards people living with HIV/AIDS in nursing students.

Conscience is defined as the cornerstone of ethics and is considered a valuable asset. There is, however, little evidence about how Iranian nurses perceive conscience. The purpose of this study was to psychometrically evaluate the Persian version of the Perception of Conscience Questionnaire (PCQ) in Iranian nurses. In this cross-sectional and descriptive study, a psychometric evaluation of the PCQ was conducted on Iranian nurses in 2022. A total of 300 nurses participated in this study to validate the PCQ. At first, the initial translation and determination of face validity was done, and content validity was assessed using the Content Validity Index and Content Validity Ratio. Reliability was determined by intra-class correlation coefficient and Cronbach's alpha coefficient.The construct validity of the PCQ was determined by exploratory factor analysis, which led to the extraction of five factors of warning signal, valuable asset, spiritual power, burden and conscience outcomes from the initial 14 factors of the questionnaire. Reliability of the whole questionnaire was calculated to be 0.80 using Cronbach's alpha. While an intra-class correlation coefficient of 0.58 indicated average stability, the five-factor construct of the PCQ showed good validity and reliability. Therefore, our findings proved that this tool is suitable for assessing Iranian nurses’ perception of conscience.

Moral disengagement is a set of cognitive mechanisms through which a person violates his/her moral standards without losing his/her dignity. Therefore, a tool has been designed to measure moral disengagement in nurses. This study aims to determine the psychometric properties of the Nursing Moral Disengagement scale. In this methodological study, 440 nurses working in hospitals of Mashhad were selected by the availability sampling method. The translation was carried out using the forward-backward method. The final version of the tool was psychometrically tested for validity (exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis) and reliability (internal consistency and relative stability). Four factors were extracted in the exploratory factor analysis, and since the factor loadings of all the tool items were higher than 0.3,they were all retained. The tool's general fit indices indicated the model's confirmation and optimal fit. Cronbach's alpha and relative stability coefficients for the whole questionnaire were 0.90 and 0.89, respectively. The study results showed that this tool has good validity and reliability and can therefore measure behaviors related to moral disengagement in nurses, so that appropriate interventions can be designed to reduce these harmful behaviors.

ABSTRACT Objective: to translate, culturally adapt and validate the Multidimensional Individual and Interpersonal Resilience Measure to Brazilian Portuguese. Method: after initial translation, the pre-final version underwent rigorous cultural adaptation procedures. As a result, the final adapted version was submitted to a validity study. Results: adaptation procedures provided equivalence between the pre-final and the original versions in semantic, idiomatic, experiential and conceptual terms. A total of 187 older adults were included in the validity study. Exploratory factorial analysis (EFA) generated a model of five factors ((RMSEA = 0.030; TLI = 0.959; X2 = 151.590 p> 0.05). Final version showed adequate consistency (Cronbach’s α = 0.705) and test-retest reliability (ICC=0.835). No statistically significant correlation was found between resilience and sociodemographic and epidemiological variables assessed in this study. Conclusion: EMRII-BR is a valid and reliable instrument for measuring resilience in Brazilian older adults.

Background: One of the environments where people living with HIV/AIDS should feel safer is in the health care setting; however, scientific evidence has identified discriminatory behaviour on the part of health care professionals towards these people. The reduction or abolition of discriminatory practices requires, first of all, to know the attitudes of nursing students towards AIDS with tools appropriate to the socio-cultural context of the disease. The objectives of this study are to update the AIDS Attitudes Scale for Nursing Students (EASE) by adapting it to the sociocultural landscape and to analyse the reliability and structural validity of the new scale. Methods: The results of the questionnaires answered by 213 undergraduate nursing students from the Faculty of Health Sciences of Ceuta (University of Granada) were analysed. Reliability (test-retest, n = 33) and validity (n = 180) tests were carried out. Results: An exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis indicated that a four-factor model was the most parsimonious solution. Items were examined for their underlying relationships and labelled: professional practice, social integration, partner and family, and benevolent stigma. The new scale yielded a McDonald's Omega coefficient (ω) of 0.893. Convergent validity was established for average variance extracted per factor greater than 0.5 and divergent validity when the variance retained by each factor is greater than the variance shared between them (average variance extracted per factor > ϕ2). Conclusions: The new scale is a psychometrically sound instrument for assessing attitudes towards people living with HIV/AIDS in nursing students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Objectives: to construct and validate the Interprofessional Communication Scale in Health. Methods: a psychometric study was carried out on a sample of 360 nurses from a hospital and university center in central Portugal. Reliability was assessed through internal consistency and construct validity through exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. Results: the Interprofessional Communication in Health Scale, consisting of 27 items, is organized into 3 factors: “Teamwork”, “Conflict management” and “Leadership”, with a total variance of 51.1%. Good internal consistency was obtained, with a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.842, and adequate Goodness of Fit Index model. Conclusions: the Interprofessional Communication in Health Scale presents a factorial structure with adequate validity and reliability results, and may constitute a useful self-report instrument in assessing interprofessional communication in health.

ABSTRACT Objectives: to cross-culturally adapt the scale Resultados en la valoración y evolución de la cicatrización de las heridas - RESVECH 2.0 for Brazilian Portuguese; to estimate the internal consistency and construct and criterion validity of the scale in the evaluation of venous ulcers. Methods: methodological study, based on international guidelines for studies of this type. Wounds were evaluated using the RESVECH 2.0 and Pressure Ulcer Scale of Healing 3.0 (PUSH). Descriptive analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, Cronbach’s alpha and Spearman’s correlation (p

One critical tactic that leads to a better understanding of the ethical status of dentists is to assess their ethical attitude by using an appropriate scale. This study aimed to design and evaluate the validity and reliability of the ethical attitude of dentists scale (EADS).This study was conducted based on a mixed‐method design. The first qualitative part of the study was conducted in 2019 and the items of the scale were produced from the ethical codes compiled in a previous study. In this part, the psychometric analysis was conducted. The reliability was evaluated by Cronbach's alpha coefficient and intraclass correlation coefficient. Factor analysis was used to assess the construct validity (n = 511), and the following three factors were extracted with a total variance of 48.03. (1) Maintaining the standing of the profession in relationships. (2) Providing dental services while maintaining trust in the profession, and (3) Providing information for the benefit of the patient.In confirmatory factor analysis, appropriate values were obtained for the goodness of fit indices, and Cronbach’s alpha was 0.68 - 0.84 for the various factors. Based on the results mentioned above, this scale showed an appropriate validity and reliability for measuring the ethical attitude of dentists.

Background: Physical literacy has been widely considered by researchers in recent years, but there are limited tools for measuring it, and have not been reported a reliable tools for measuring physical literacy in Iran yet. Aims: This study was done to investigate the psychometric properties of Sam (2016) Perceived Physical Literacy Instrument (PPLI). Method: The method of this research was descriptive and the study population were high school students in Tehran in 2019-2020 who were selected through multi-stage cluster sampling from different parts of Tehran. The sample size of the study was 836 adolescents aged 12-18 years. The translation process of the questionnaire was done forward-backward, then the content validity of the questionnaire was performed using the opinions of 10 sports science experts. After distributing the questionnaire in the data sample, it was tested in the assumed three-factor model of Sam (2016). Also, to assess the reliability of the instrument, the questionnaire was re-assessed in 30 subjects after 11 days. Data were analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis test, Cronbach's alpha and Pearson correlation coefficients. Results: The results of confirmatory factor analysis showed that CFI, NFI, GFI, IFI (> 0/9), PCFI, PNFI (> 0/8) and AGFI (> 0/5) indices has optimal fit of the model and the three-factor model was approved. Also, the instrument had good internal consistency and reliability of test-retest in the factors and scale (> 0/7). Conclusions: The results of this study showed that the Persian PPLI has good validity and reliability and can be used to assess the perceived physical literacy of adolescents.

Background: Assessing medically-related fears is of paramount importance to foster medical positive experiences and outcomes and requires an easy-to-administer tool. The Medical Fear Survey-Short Version (MFS-SV) is a 25-item questionnaire assessing 5 medically related fears (Injections and Blood Draws, Sharp Objects, Blood, Mutilation, and Examinations and Symptoms). Methods: To examine the psychometric properties of the Italian version of the MFS-SV, exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis were performed on data from 1010 young adults (68.8% female, mean age= 23.9±5.05) who provided demographic information and completed the MFS-SV, the Padua Inventory-Contamination Fear Subscale, the Disgust Propensity and Sensitivity Scale revised (DPSS-R) and the Injection Phobia Scale-Anxiety (IPS-Anx). Convergent validity, reliability, test-retest stability, and multigroup invariance were assessed. Discriminant analysis explored the potential screening function of the MFS-SV. Results: The 5-factor structure of the questionnaire was confirmed, explaining the 68.8% of variance. Raykov’s composite reliability coefficients ranged between .84 and .95. Test-retest stability, convergent validity, and the consistency of the scores across gender were confirmed. The MFS-SV could discriminate subjects with a history of blood donations (Wilk’s Lambda = 0.915; p 0.001). Conclusion: The overall results supported the psychometric properties of the MFS-SV and its suitability for both research and clinical uses to assess different medical fears.

Rubia Carla Formighieri Giordani,1 Suely Ruiz Giolo,2 Camila Muhl,3 Arune João Estavela,4 Janete Ismael Mabuie Gove4 1Department of Nutrition, Federal University of Parana, Curitiba, Parana, Brazil; 2Department of Statistics, Federal University of Parana, Curitiba, Parana, Brazil; 3Department of Psychology, FAE University, Curitiba, Parana, Brazil; 4High Institute of Health Sciences, Maputo, MozambiqueCorrespondence: Rubia Carla Formighieri GiordaniDepartment of Nutrition, Federal University of Parana, Curitiba, Parana, 80210-170, BrazilTel +55 41 3360 4056Email rubia@ufpr.brPurpose: This study aimed to validate the Portuguese version of the Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19S) and investigate its association with sociodemographic and pandemic-related variables in the population of Mozambique.Participants and Methods: A cross-sectional online survey recruited 387 Mozambicans aged 18 to 70 years. The psychometric properties of the Portuguese version of the FCV-19S were evaluated using confirmatory factor analysis and Rash analysis. Additionally, the association of the FCV-19S with sociodemographic and pandemic-related variables was investigated using the two-sample t-test, one-way analysis of variance, and logistic regression.Results: The unidimensional factor structure of the Portuguese version of the FCV-19S was confirmed, and the scale showed good internal consistency reliability. The FCV-19S properties tested from the Rasch analysis were satisfactory. Women and those with lower education levels had higher scores of fear. Moreover, significantly higher levels of fear were observed among those being in an at-risk group for COVID-19, having family members or friends diagnosed or with death confirmed by COVID-19, and not being confident that they would receive adequate care from the public health services in case of COVID-19 infection.Conclusion: The Portuguese version of FCV-19S has strong psychometric properties and can be used to assess the fear of COVID-19 in the Portuguese-speaking population of Mozambique. As the adverse impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health represents a challenge to clinical psychiatry, and information on mental health in African countries is still scarce, our findings may assist in the planning of public mental health policies, aimed mainly at specific segments of the population, such as women and people in extreme poverty.Keywords: mental health, fear scale, infection, pandemic, psychometrics

ABSTRACT Objective: To investigate the evidence of content validity and reliability of the Brazilian version of the Nutritional Literacy Scale (NLS) after the cultural adaptation process. Methods: Psychometric study of 1,197 users of the National Health Service (Brazilian SUS). The NLS was culturally adapted to Brazilian Portuguese and six items of the original scale were modified to improve its understanding, giving rise to the Brazilian version of the scale named NLS-BR. The analysis of evidence of content validity of the NLS-BR was performed using the Item Response Theory (IRT). Results: The final version of the NLS-BR had 23 items and proved to be adequate to assess nutritional literacy in adults assisted by the Brazilian SUS. Final considerations: The NLS-BR proved to be of adequate understanding and demonstrated evidence of content validity and reliability for users of the Brazilian SUS.

This study aims to assess the psychometric properties of the Persian version of the Attitudes Toward Plagiarism Questionnaire (ATPQ) among Iranian medical sciences postgraduate students and faculty members. In this study, the ATPQ developed by Mavrinac et al. in 2010 was translated into Persian. After assessment of face and content validity, we distributed the ATPQ draft among 286 Iranian medical science postgraduate students and faculty members. Explanatory and confirmatory factor analysis were applied, and Cronbach's alpha was used to measure the reliability of the ATPQ. All the items of our English version of the ATPQ were approved by the developer of the original ATPQ, and two were revised in the cognitive interview. Construct validity assessment showed that three items were not seriously involved in the extracted factors. The Persian version of the ATPQ had 26 items, five factors and a Cronbach's alpha of 0.81%, and the combined value explained 38.24% of the total variance of this scale. Two new factors of “perceived control” and “attitude toward self-plagiarism” were extracted and incorporated into the Persian version. To conclude, the ATPQ is a valid, reliable, and convenient instrument to determine attitudes toward plagiarism among Iranian medical science postgraduate students and faculty members.

Objective. To assess the assumption of ‘equity’ of Mexico’s resident-selection assessment tool, the Examen Nacional para Aspirantes a Residencias Médicas (ENARM). Materials and methods. Official ENARM-2016 and -2017 databases were analyzed. Differences in the absolute number of correct answers (multivariable linear regression) and the number of applicants reaching their specialty minimum score (SMS) per test day (odds ratio [OR]) were calculated. Applicants affected by test-day inequity were estimated. Results. There were 36 114 applicants in 2016, and 38 380 in 2017. In 2016, day-2 applicants had significantly higher scores and more reached the SMS than on days 1-3-4 (OR 1.55), and 5 (OR 3.8); 3 565 non-passing applicants were affected by inequity (equivalent to 44.64% of those selected). In 2017, day-1 and -2 applicants had significantly higher scores and more reached the SMS than on days 3-4 (OR 1.85), and 5 (OR 4.04); 3,155 non-passing applicants were affected by inequity (37.2% of those selected). Conclusion. Analysis of official ENARM databases does not support the official attribution of equity, suggesting the test should be redesigned.

Anxiety related to medical procedures is pervasive, in particular for those involving needles and blood, such as injections and blood donations. Therefore, assessment and detection of anxiety before and during these procedures is critical for developing timely interventions for the at-risk population, and thereby increasing the panel of potential blood donors. The Injection Phobia Scale-Anxiety (IPS-Anx) was an 18 item questionnaire for estimating anxiety related to blood and needles; however, it had never been used among blood donors. The measures were translated and tested during a pre-pilot phase (Study 1). During Study 2 (n = 344) and 3 (n = 370), the model of measurement of IPS-IT-Anx was evaluated by exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis. Test-retest stability, convergent validity, and reliability of measures were assessed during Study 4 (n = 243). Finally, the scores from participants in the different studies were pooled (Study 5; n = 957) in order to test whether the factor structure showed multigroup invariance, and to evaluate whether IPS-IT-Anx scores were associated with blood donation. The overall results of the statistical analysis supported a 12-item measurement model comprising the two original dimensions, distal and contact fear, of the IPS-IT-Anx. The findings of the study supported IPS-IT-Anx, suggesting it had excellent psychometric properties and was suitability for each clinical research uses focused on the assessment of blood-injection anxiety.

Objective: To assess construct validity (Rasch analyses) of the Measure of Activity Performance of the Hand (MAP-Hand) in people with carpometacarpal osteoarthritis (CMC1 OA), and to explore differences in activity performance between people with CMC1 OA and those with rheumatoid arthritis. Design: Cross-sectional study. Subjects: A total of 180 people with CMC1 OA referred for surgical consultation were recruited from rheumatology clinics in Norway, and 340 people with rheumatoid arthritis were recruited from outpatient rheumatology clinics in the UK. Methods: The MAP-Hand consists of 18 predefined items scored on a 4-point scale from 1 (no difficulty) to 4 (unable to do), from which a mean score is calculated. Construct validity was assessed using Rasch analyses. Differences between the 2 groups were assessed using an independent sample t-test at the group level and differential item functioning (condition as grouping variable) at the item level. Results: Some mis-targeting of data and clusters of dependency were found, but the MAP-Hand scores showed an overall fit to the model. No between-group difference in total mean MAP-Hand score was found, but there were significant differences between the 2 groups on item levels. Conclusion: The MAP-Hand showed satisfactory construct validity and could differentiate between people with CMC1 OA and those with rheumatoid arthritis on item levels.

Background: Designing a valid and reliable questionnaire that allows a fair evaluation of sexual knowledge and attitudes and develop a proper sexual educational program is necessary. Objective: The present study was designed to develop and psychometric evaluation of the sexual knowledge and attitudes scale for premarital couples. Materials and Methods: An exploratory mixed method study was conducted in two phases; in the first, in order to develop a questionnaire an item pool was generated on sexual knowledge and attitudes through focus group discussions and individual interviews. In the second phase, the psychometric properties of the questionnaire were examined. For this purpose, face validity, content validity as well as construct validity were conducted. Reliability was assessed by the Cronbach’s alpha coefficient to assess internal consistency and test-retest reliability. Results: In the first phase an item pool with 88 questions was generated (sexual knowledge 45 items and sexual attitudes 43 items). In the second phase, the number of final items reduced to 33 and 34 items of sexual knowledge and sexual attitudes respectively, through exploratory factor analysis (EFA). Five factors for sexual knowledge and six factors for sexual attitudes identified by EFA. The Cronbach’s alpha coefficient for two sections was 0.84 and 0.81 respectively. The test- retest correlations for sexual knowledge and sexual attitude was 0.74 and 0.82 respectively. Conclusion: The findings suggest that the Sexual Knowledge and Attitudes Scale for Premarital Couples is a valid and reliable instrument. Further studies are needed to establish stronger psychometric properties for the questionnaire.

Objective: To compare the measurement properties of the de Morton Mobility Index (DEMMI) and the Hierarchical Assessment of Balance and Mobility (HABAM) in an older acute medical inpatient population. Design: Cross-sectional. Subjects: Older acute medical inpatients. Methods: The DEMMI, HABAM and further assessments were performed after hospital admission. Construct validity was assessed by testing 13 hypotheses on convergent and known-groups validity. Test–retest reliability and minimal detectable change were estimated based on a re-assessment of unchanged patients. Floor and ceiling effects were used to indicate adequacy of scale width. Results: For both the DEMMI and HABAM, 11 (85%) hypotheses regarding construct validity were confirmed (n = 158). Both scales showed strong correlations with other multi-component mobility scales (Spearman’s rho 0.75–0.92). Neither floor nor ceiling effects were evident. The intraclass correlation coefficient was 0.98 (95% confidence interval (95% CI) 0.96–0.99) for the DEMMI and 0.99 (95% CI 0.99–0.99) for the HABAM, respectively (n = 30). The minimal detectable change with 90% confidence was 6 points on the 100-point DEMMI scale and 1 point on the 26-point HABAM scale. Conclusion: The DEMMI and the HABAM appear to be suitable for measuring mobility in older acute medical patients.

Work engagement is an affective-motivational condition that generates willingness, involvement at work and focused effort on the accomplishment of tasks by the employee. This study joined validity evidence for the Engaged Teachers Scale (ETS) in the Brazilian context. The sample consisted of 417 teachers, male and female (62.1% female). The confirmatory factor analyses evidenced that the original model of the instrument, which consists of 16 items distributed in four factors, showed the best fit to the data. The scale revealed invariance for sex, application type (face-to-face or online), age range and teaching experience. The internal consistency rates range between 0.66 and 0.85. Furthermore, the scale showed convergent validity indicators with work engagement and affective organizational commitment. The good psychometric qualities of the scale recommend its future use in research of engagement in teachers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Objective: to present preliminary psychometric evidence of the cross-cultural adaptation of the Vulnerability to Abuse Screening Scale. Method: The steps of cultural adaptation verified conceptual, item, semantic and measurement equivalence. For measurement equivalence and verification of the psychometric data of the study samples of 30 and 66 elderly persons, respectively, were used. Descriptive and inferential statistics (KR-20, T-Student Test, Pearson correlation, univariate ANOVA and the Fleiss’ Kappa Index) were used for analysis of results. Results: It was found that the age of the participants ranged between 60 and 84 years, with a majority of older women participants (n=38). The KR-20 value for the overall score of the instrument was 0.688. The values for the four dimensions proposed by the authors of the instrument were 0.528, 0.289, 0.552 and 0.303, respectively. Only the values of the subscales Vulnerability and Coercion proved to be close to those of the original study (0.550 and 0.390). Conclusion: The internal consistency values found in the present study ranged from moderate to good, indicating that the results were satisfactory, despite being initial findings.

Objective To validate the Work Limitations Questionnaire (WLQ) to measure presenteeism in Brazilian military personnel. Methods This is a test validation study conducted with 125 individuals of a military staff attending a Brazilian Army Unit. We applied a form with demographic and occupational variables and the WLQ, composed of 25 items. The construct validity was assed trough confirmatory factorial analysis. Results We confirmed the interdependent structure of the WLQ´s domains for explaining the presenteeism of the sample in four domains: outcome demand, mental demand, physical demand and time management. Most of items showed factorial loads between 0.5 and 0.7 and the adjustment (absolute and incremental) and residues indexes demonstrated satisfactory values. The Alphas in domains ranged from 0.68 (output demand) to 0.79 (time management) in domains, evidencing reliability for the WLQ. Conclusion We confirm the construct validity of the WLQ to assess presenteeism in Brazilian military staff. How to cite this article: Umann J, Silva RM, Kimura CA, Lopes VC, Guilhem DB. Validation of the Work Limitations Questionnaire in Brazilian Army military personnel. Invest. Educ. Enferm. 2018; 36(3):e06.

R is a free computing environment for statistical data analysis and graph creation. It is becoming a key tool in a wide range of knowledge domains. The interaction with the software is mainly based on a command line interface but efforts are currently being made to develop friendlier graphical user interfaces that will help novice users to become familiar with this programming language. R is a flexible and powerful system thanks to the development community that is working together to improve its capabilities. As a result, it is the chosen statistical software in many applied and basic contexts. This paper highlights the potential usefulness of R for psychological assessment and related areas. Additionally, the relevance of statistical data analysis is emphasised as an instrument that will boost the progress of psychology under the umbrella of the scientific method.

Genetic algorithms (GAs) are robust machine learning approaches for abbreviating a large set of variables into a shorter subset that maximally captures the variance in the original data. We employed a GA-based method to shorten the 62-item Multidimensional Experiential Avoidance Questionnaire (MEAQ) by half without much loss of information. Experiential avoidance or the tendency to avoid negative internal experiences is a key target of many psychological interventions and its measurement is an important issue in psychology. The 62-item MEAQ has been shown to have good psychometric properties, but its length may limit its use in most practical settings. The recently validated 15-item brief version (BEAQ) is one short alternative, but it reduces the multidimensional scale to a single dimension. We sought to shorten the 62-item MEAQ by half while maintaining fidelity to its six dimensions. In a large nationally representative sample of Americans (N=7884; 52% female; Age: M=47.9, SD=16), we employed a GA method of scale abbreviation implemented in the R package, GAabbreviate. The GA-derived short form, MEAQ-30 with 5 items per subscale, performed virtually identically to the original 62-item MEAQ in terms of inter-subscales correlations, factor structure, factor correlations, and zero-order correlations and unique latent associations of the six subscales with other measures of mental distress, wellbeing and personal strivings. The two measures also showed similar distributions of means across American census regions. The MEAQ-30 provides a multidimensional assessment of experiential avoidance whilst minimizing participant burden. The study adds to the emerging literature on the utility of machine learning methods in psychometrics.

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is characterized by decreased attention span, impulsivity and hyperactivity, affecting children, adolescents and adults. There are several tools that can aid in the diagnosis of this disorder and one of them is the index of resistance to distractibility (IRD) of the WISC-III Digit Span and Arithmetic subtests. Objective: To evaluate, through the Wechsler Intelligence Scale III (WISC III), the intelligence quotient (IQ) Global, Verbal and Performance and measure the performance indices in Factorials and identifying whether or not the presence of ADHD. Method: Design quantitative transversal. Sample of 80 participants, aged 6-15 years, 26 females and 54 males. Results: Of the participants assessed, 67.5% had ADHD. The majority of this percentage had an IQ in the medium term, and those who did not have ADHD have a much higher IQ. Conclusion: The WISC-III is shown to be sensitive in the diagnosis of children with ADHD and is a useful tool to assist in the evaluation of children with this disorder

Cronbach's alpha is an estimate of the reliability of a test score if the items are essentially tau-equivalent. Several authors have derived results that provide alternative interpretations of alpha. These interpretations are also valid if essential tau-equivalency does not hold. For example, alpha is the mean of all split-half reliabilities if the test is split into two halves that are equal in size. This note presents several connections between Cronbach's alpha and the Spearman-Brown formula. The results provide new interpretations of Cronbach's alpha, the stepped down alpha, and standardized alpha, that are also valid in the case that essential tau-equivalency or parallel equivalency do not hold. The main result is that the stepped down alpha is a weighted average of the alphas of all subtests of a specific size, where the weights are the denominators of the subtest alphas. Thus, the stepped down alpha can be interpreted as an average subtest alpha. Furthermore, we may calculate the stepped down alpha without using the Spearman-Brown formula. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One critical tactic that leads to a better understanding of the ethical status of dentists is to assess their ethical attitude by using an appropriate scale. This study aimed to design and evaluate the validity and reliability of the ethical attitude of dentists scale (EADS). This study was conducted based on a mixed-method design. The first qualitative part of the study was conducted in 2019 and the items of the scale were produced from the ethical codes compiled in a previous study. In this part, the psychometric analysis was conducted. The reliability was evaluated by Cronbach's alpha coefficient and intraclass correlation coefficient. Factor analysis was used to assess the construct validity (n = 511), and the following three factors were extracted with a total variance of 48.03. 1) Maintaining the standing of the profession in relationships. 2) Providing dental services while maintaining trust in the profession, and 3) Providing information for the benefit of the patient. In confirmatory factor analysis, appropriate values were obtained for the goodness of fit indices, and Cronbach's alpha was 0.68 - 0.84 for the various factors. Based on the results mentioned above, this scale showed an appropriate validity and reliability for measuring the ethical attitude of dentists., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interests., (Copyright © 2022 Tehran University of Medical Sciences.)

This paper presents a review and discussion of eight self-report measures used to assess for depressive symptoms in the postpartum period. Because postpartum depression is a significant mental health problem, there is a need for reliable and valid screening instruments. Published psychometric data (e.g., reliability, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, concurrent validity) of each self-report instrument are presented and critiqued. Results suggest that the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale is the most extensively studied measure with postpartum women with moderate psychometric soundness. This review illustrates the need for more research in this area. Issues involved in the selection of measures are considered. Implications for clinical practice, research, culture and language are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Responses from 101 African American/Black and 100 White women were used to examine the psychometric properties of the Womanist Identity Attitudes Scale (WIAS; Ossana, 1986; Ossana, Helms, & Leonard, 1992). First, internal consistency reliabilities suggested the need for further development of 3 of the 4 WIAS subscales. Second, links between WIAS scores and (a) sexist, (b) hostile sexist attitudes toward women, (c) benevolently sexist attitudes toward women, and (d) egalitarian attitudes toward women's rights and roles provided mixed support for the convergent validity of the WIAS. Third, consistent with theoretical conceptualization, the intercorrelations among WIAS subscales were similar for African American/Black and White women. These intercorrelations, however, were not entirely consistent with the theorized developmental process of the womanist identity model. Finally, the structural validity of the WIAS was examined using confirmatory and exploratory factor-analytic procedures. Both sets of analyses challenged the fit of the theorized womanist identity development model with data produced by the WIAS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study reports on the psychometric properties of a brief, self-administered screening questionnaire, the Columbia SuicideScreen® (CSS), intended to identify high school students at risk for suicide. Method: Seventeen hundred twenty-nine 9th- to 12th-grade students completed the CSS and Beck Depression Inventory during school hours in 1991 to 1994. Three hundred fifty-six students who screened positively and 285, group matched on age, gender, and ethnicity, who screened negatively were examined on the Diagnostic interview Schedule for Children (DISC), version 2.3, to assess validity. The DISC-based suicide risk criterion was suicidal ideation or prior suicide attempt and a DSM-III-R diagnosis of major depression or dysthymia or substance use. Test-retest reliability was assessed in a subsample of 85. Results: The most balanced algorithm had a sensitivity of 0.75, specificity 0.83, and positive predictive value 16%. Suicidal ideation and prior attempt item reliabilities (K) were 0.48 and 0.58, respectively. Eight-day test-retest reliability for the most balanced scoring algorithm was 0.32. Conclusions: The CSS demonstrated good sensitivity and reasonable specificity identifying students at risk for suicide. A second-stage evaluation would be needed to reduce the burden of low specificity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Empirical Bayes regression procedures are often used in educational and psychological testing as extensions to latent variables models. The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is an important national survey using such procedures. The NAFP applies empirical Bayes methods to models from item response theory to calibrate student responses to questions of varying difficulty. Due partially to the limited computing technology that existed when NAEP was first conceived. NAEP analyses are carried out using a two-stage estimation procedure that ignores uncertainty about some model parameters. Furthermore, the item response theory model that NAEP uses ignores the effect of item clustering created by the design of a test form. Using Markov chain Monte Carlo, we simultaneously estimate all parameters of an expanded model that considers item clustering to investigate the impact of item clustering and ignoring uncertainty about model parameters on an important outcome measure that NAEP report. Ignoring these two effects causes substantial underestimation of standard errors and induces a modest bias in location estimates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objectives of the study were to design and develop a questionnaire to measure individuals‘ perceptions of the impact of diabetes on their quality of life (QoL). The design of the ADDQoL (Audit of Diabetes Dependent QoL) was influenced by patient-centred principles underlying the SEIQoL interview method. Respondents rate only personally-applicable life domains, indicating importance and impact of diabetes. Fifty-two out-patients with diabetes and 102 attending diabetes education open days provided data for psychometric analyses. Each of the 13 domain-specific ADDQoL items was relevant and important for substantial numbers of respondents. Factor analysis and Cronbach‘s α coefficient of internal consistency (0.85) supported combination of items into a scale. Insulin-treated patients reported greater impact of diabetes on QoL than tablet / diet-treated patients. People with microvascular complications showed, as expected, greater diabetes-related impairment of QoL than people without complications. Unlike other QoL measures, the ADDQoL is an individualized questionnaire measure of the impact of diabetes and its treatment on QoL. Preliminary evidence of reliability and validity is established for adults with diabetes. Findings suggest that the ADDQoL will be more sensitive to change and responsive to differences than generic QoL measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study analyzed and assessed dimensions of a questionnaire developed to measure general fears and phobias. A previous factor analysis among 109 dental phobias had revealed a five-factor structure with 22 items and an explained total variance of 54%. The present study analyzed the same material using a multivariate statistical procedure (LISREL.) to reveal structural latent variables. The LISREL analysis, based on the correlation matrix, yielded a chi-square of 216.6 with 195 degrees of freedom (P=0.138) and showed a model with seven latent variables. One was a general fear factor correlated to all 22 items. The other six factors concerned "Illness & Death" (5 items), Failures & Embarrassment" (5 items), " Social situations" (5 items), "Physical injuries" (4 items), "Animals & Natural phenomena" (4 items). One item (opposite sex) was included in both "Failures & Embarrassment" and "Social situations". The last factor, "Social interaction", combined all the items in "Failures & Embarrassment" and "Social situations" (9 items). In conclusion, this multivariate statistical analysis. (LISREL) revealed and confirmed a factor structure similar to our previous study but added two important dimensions not shown with a traditional factor analysis. This reduced FSS - II version measures general fears and phobias and may be used on a routine clinical basis as well as in dental phobia research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Four psychometric scales: Corah Dental Anxiety Scale (CDAS), a modified version of' the Geer Fear Scale (GFS), the Health LOCUS of Control Scale (HLCS), and a Mood Adjective Check List (MACL), were studied with regard to their implications for dental fear. Swedish versions given to groups of fearful and non-fearful dental patients as well as non-patients showed satisfactory metric properties. Mean scores obtained were in most cases similar to those reported for original American versions, even through some indications of cultural differences were observed. The scales seem to reflect important aspects of dental fear and they represent a valuable methodology in research on etiology and treatment of dental fear. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The revised Functional Assessment of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection (FAHI) quality of life (QoL) instrument has been updated and expanded to provide more complete and accurate coverage of human immune deficiency virus/ acquired immune deficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS)-related QoL. Factor analysis and the Rasch measurement model were used to determine a new subscale structure for the FAHI. The content of these subscales, including physical well-being (ten items, α = 0.91), function and global well-being (13 items, α = 0.86), emotional well-being/living with HIV (10 items, α = 0.82), social well-being (eight items, α = 0.73), and cognitive functioning (three items; α = 0.75), reflect both general illness- and HIV/AIDS-specific QoL concerns: a total QoL score can also be calculated for the FAHI (44 items, α =0.91). Psychometric evaluation revealed good internal consistency reliability for the FAHI and its subscales. In addition, construct validity, known groups validity and sensitivity to change were demonstrated by significant associations between the FAHI and additional indicators of functional status, psychological symptoms, stress and illness severity. In summary, the FAHI is a psychometrically sound instrument that captures multiple important dimensions of HIV/AIDS-related QoL. It is brief, easy to administer and score, has been translated into nine languages other than English and is appropriate for use in clinical trials and clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our understanding of the processes underlying animal cognition has improved dramatically in recent years, but we still know little about how cognitive traits evolve. Following Darwinian logic, to understand how selection acts on such traits we must determine whether they vary between individuals, influence fitness, and are heritable. A handful of recent studies have begun to explore the relationship between variation in individual cognitive performance and fitness under natural conditions. Such work holds great promise, but its success is contingent on accurate characterization and quantification of the cognitive differences between individuals. Existing research has typically adopted a “problem-solving” approach, assuming that individuals that complete novel tasks have greater cognitive prowess than those that do not. We argue that this approach is incapable of determining that individual differences are due to cognitive factors. We propose the adoption of psychologically grounded psychometric testing and discuss the criteria necessary to examine the fitness consequences of cognitive variation in the wild.Does it pay to be smart? To understand how cognitive abilities evolve, we must test whether individuals gain advantages from having elevated cognitive abilities. Unfortunately, measuring cognitive differences between individuals is rather hard to do. We suggest ideas from psychology to help field biologists design suitable cognitive tests for wild animals and consider ways to explore whether and how natural selection favours the individuals at the top of the class. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Objective: To determine psychometric properties, a cut-off score for severe fatigue and normative data for the 4-item Short Fatigue Questionnaire (SFQ) derived from the multi-dimensional fatigue questionnaire Checklist Individual Strength (CIS).Methods: Data of previous studies investigating the prevalence of fatigue in ten chronic conditions (n = 2985) and the general population (n = 2288) was used to determine the internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha) of the SFQ, its relation with other fatigue measures (EORTC QLQ-30 fatigue subscale and digital fatigue diary), a cut-off score for severe fatigue (ROC analysis) and to examine whether the four SFQ items truly measure the same construct. Norms were calculated for ten patient groups and the Dutch general population.Results: Cronbach's alpha of the SFQ were excellent in almost all groups. Pearson's correlations between the SFQ and the EORTC-QLQ-C30 fatigue subscale and a fatigue diary were respectively 0.76 and 0.68. ROC analysis showed an area under the curve of 0.982 (95% CI: 0.979-0.985) and cut-off score of 18 was suggested which showed a good sensitivity (0.984) and specificity (0.826) as well as excellent values for the positive and negative prediction values within all groups using the CIS as golden standard. Factor analysis showed a one factor solution (Eigenvalue: 3.095) with factor loadings of all items on the factor being greater than 0.87.Conclusion: The SFQ is an easy to use, reliable and valid instrument to screen for severe fatigue in clinical routine and research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main objective of this study was the validation of the Healthy Lifestyle Questionnaire (EVS II), using a confirmatory factorial analysis of the measurement model, with veteran athletes. A total of 348 veteran Portuguese athletes of both genders, aged between 30 and 60 years ( M = 41.64, SD = 9.83), of whom 200 were males and 148 were females, from several sports. The results of the confirmatory factor analysis demonstrate the adequacy of the adapted version of the EVS II, as the factorial structure (6 factors/24 items) has acceptable validity indexes: χ 2 = 305.925, p = 0.000, d f = 120.017, χ 2 /df = 2.549, NFI (Normed Fit Index) = 0.909, TLI (Tucker Lewis Index) = 0.918, CFI (Comparative Fit Index) = 0.944, GFI (Goodness of Fit Index) = 0.944, AGFI (Adjusted Goodness of Fit Index) = 0.909, SRMR (Standardized Root Mean Square Residual) = 0.048, RMSEA (Root Mean Square of Approximation) = 0.060, allowing evaluation of the dimensions of balanced diet, respect for mealtime, tobacco and alcohol consumption, other drugs consumption and resting habits. The adaptation to sport of the Portuguese version of EVS II can be used with reasonable confidence in the evaluation of healthy lifestyles in the context of sport.