Factor Structure of a Coping Scale Across Two Samples1

Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were used to assess the structure of a coping with illness scale. Two HIV‐positive samples from different geographical areas were used to verify the underlying factor structure: a sample of 320 young adults (M age = 20.9 years; 72% males) and a second sample of 273 older adults (M= 38.1 years; 81% females). Exploratory results with the young adult sample assuming correlated factors showed 7 reliable factors; CFA results supported these findings in that sample. Confirmation of the 7 derived subscales using the adult sample was found using CFA, although 2 subscale reliabilities were just below .50. Correlations between the 7 sub‐scales and other scales used for construct validation were generally as predicted. Coping similarities and differences between HIV‐infected young adult and adult populations are discussed.     

An Examination of the Factor Structure and Scale Reliability of the Work Motivation Scale,the Motivation Sources Inventory

This study examined the factor structure and scale reliability of the Motivation Sources Inventory (MSI; Barbuto & Scholl, 1998 ), an instrument designed to measure the motivational concepts contained within the meta‐theory of motivation ( Leonard, Beauvais, & Scholl, 1999 ). Participants were comprised of financial‐service professionals, health‐industry administrators, and retail and distribution workers, all engaged in full‐time employment in Ireland. Data were collected through the administration of the Motivation Source Inventory (MSI) to a sample of working professionals (N = 252). Factor analyses, scale reliabilities, and inter‐item correlations were conducted. Results of the current study did not support the scale structure reported by the instrument developers. The implications of these results and suggestions for future research are presented.     

The Factor Structure and Measurement Invariance of the Daily Spiritual Experiences Scale

The current study has two main goals: (a) to identify a factor structure of the Daily Spiritual Experiences Scale (DSES) on a large archival data, collected from 1,325 adults in the United States (709 women, 616 men) by the U.S. General Social Survey in 2004 and (b) to examine the measurement invariance of the 16 DSES items between women and men in the same data to see whether any of the items are favoring or biased toward either women or men. The one-factor confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) model fit our data better than the two-factor CFA models because of high correlations between the two factors (r > .90). The fit of the one-factor CFA to our sample data was improved when we specified seven correlated residuals suggested by overlapping item content and large modification indices. The ensuing measurement invariance testing of the one-factor CFA model with seven correlated residuals supported full measurement invariance of factor loadings, thresholds, and residual variances, as well as factor variances between the women and the men. Yet the factor mean for the women was .841 units (Cohen’s d = .496) higher than it was for the men, indicating that higher levels of daily spiritual experiences for women reported in gender comparison studies in the United States are not likely to be an artifact of bias in the questionnaire.     

Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the Family Therapy Alliance Scale: An Evaluation of Factor Structure Across Parents and Adolescents Referred for At Risk Services

This study examines the factor structure of the Family Therapy Alliance Scale for mothers, fathers, and adolescents. Participants are 425 individuals from 216 families referred for family therapy for child abuse or neglect. Findings provide some evidence of construct validity. The three-factor model comprised of the alliance content domains of bonds, goals, and tasks and the interpersonal domains of individual, other, and family provided excellent fit. The nine-factor model exhibited poor fit, while an adjusted six-factor model which eliminated the “other” sub-category showed promise for further research. Findings support the reliability of the content and interpersonal domain’s subscales.     

The Factor Structure of the WAIS-R: Replicability Across Age-Groups

This article examines the factor structure of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale- Revised across nine age groups using several methods of factor analysis, including reliable component analysis (RCA). RCA defines orthogonal components which have maximum reliability, and has several desirable properties which are discussed. Although the one- factor model (General Intelligence, or g), and the two-factor model (Verbal and Performance) of the WAIS-R are fairly well established. no such consensus has been reached regarding the three-factor model (Verbal Comprehension. Perceptual Organization, and Freedom from Distractibility). In the present study, g and Verbal and Performance factors were consistent across age groups for most methods of extraction, although somewhat different from the usual division. The three-factor model, however, was not consistently identified across age groups by any method, particularly with respect to Freedom from Distractibility. Meaningful interpretation of scores on this factor is therefore tenuous. RCA performed well, relative to most other methods, in identifying factors consistently across age groups and can provide useful and unique information.     

The Lesbian Victim of Sexual Assault:

No abstract available for this article.     

An Examination of the Latent Structure of the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale

The Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS; Gratz and Roemer, Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment 26:41?C54, 2004) is a popular multidimensional self-report measure of emotion regulation. The present study sought to examine the latent factor structure of the DERS. An examination of latent factor intercorrelations and a higher-order confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) suggested that the DERS-AWARENESS dimension may not represent the same higher-order emotion regulation construct as the other five DERS dimensions. Furthermore, findings supported the adequacy of a revised five-factor model of the DERS in which the AWARENESS dimension was removed. This revised DERS total scale did not diminish concurrent relations between the DERS and outcomes relevant to the emotion regulation domain (i.e., depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress symptoms). Implications for the conceptualization and assessment of emotion regulation are discussed.     

Improving the Credibility of Child Sexual Assault Victims in Court: The Impact of a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner

The present study investigated the influence of a sexual assault nurse examiner's (SANE's) testimony on mock juror perceptions of a child or adolescent victim of child sexual assault. Community members (N = 252, 156 females) read a fictional criminal trial summary of a child sexual assault case in which the victim was 6 or 15 years old and the prosecution presented medical testimony from a SANE or a traditional registered nurse (RN), or did not present medical testimony. Mock jurors were more likely to render guilty verdicts when a SANE testified compared with the other two testimony conditions. In addition, pro-victim judgments (e.g., sympathy toward the victim) and negative defendant judgments (e.g., anger toward the defendant) mediated this relation. Finally, cognitive network representations of the case demonstrated that the RN and no-medical-testimony groups were similar and the SANE group was distinct from the other two conditions. We discuss these results in terms of the implications of SANE testimony in child sexual assault court cases. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Factor Structure of the Private Self-Consciousness Scale

Several issues concerning the factors of the Private Self-Consciousness Scale (PRSC) of Fenigstein et al. (1975) are examined, including possible artifactuality and appropriate conceptualization. Findings confirm the existence of the 2 factors reported in previous research (Burnkrant & Page, 1984; Lennox, Welch, Wolfe, Zimmerman, & Dixon, 1987; Mittal & Balasubramanian, 1987; Piliavin & Charng, 1988) and suggest that these factors are substantive, not artifactual, in nature. One factor was found to be associated with mild levels of psychopathology, whereas the other was not. In addition to providing a clearer conception of the nature of these factors, our results may help to resolve apparently contradictory findings in the PRSC literature. Implications for research on self-focused attention are also discussed.     

Clarifying the Relationship of Dissociative Experiences to Suicide Ideation and Attempts: A Multimethod Examination in Two Samples

Fears of pain, injury, and death may represent key barriers to acting on suicidal thoughts. Dissociation, which involves a disconnection from one’s body, may reduce fears and sensations of pain associated with harming the body, in turn facilitating suicide attempts. This study examined whether dissociation differentiated individuals with a history of suicide attempts from those with a history of suicide ideation, and investigated whether other relevant constructs explain this relationship. Sample 1 included 754 undergraduates (M_age = 21, 79% female) who completed a battery of self-report measures. Sample 2 included 247 undergraduates (M_age = 19, 74% female) who completed a self-report measure of dissociation, a clinical interview regarding suicide history, and four counterbalanced behavioral pain tolerance tasks. In both samples, dissociation was elevated in lifetime attempters compared to ideators (d = 0.28; d = 0.46; ps = 0.01) and slightly elevated in lifetime ideators compared to nonsuicidal individuals (d = 0.19, p = .02; d = 0.24, p = .47), though this effect was non-significant in the latter sample. In Sample 1, dissociation no longer differentiated attempters from ideators after controlling for clinical covariates. In Sample 2, dissociation was unrelated to behavioral pain tolerance tasks, and these tasks did not account for the association between dissociation and attempts. Overall, dissociation differentiated individuals with a history of suicide attempts from those with ideation alone in both samples. Pain tolerance did not explain this association; instead, it is possible that the relationship of dissociation to suicide attempts is due to “third variables” associated with both phenomena, such as symptoms of borderline personality disorder or posttraumatic stress disorder.     

An Examination of the Structure and Construct Validity of the Wender Utah Rating Scale

The Wender Utah Rating Scale (Ward, Wender, &; Reimherr, 1993 Ward, M. F., Wender, P. H., &; Reimherr, F. W. (1993). The Wender Utah Rating Scale: An aid in the retrospective diagnosis of childhood attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. The American Journal of Psychiatry, 150, 885–890.[Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) has been widely used in adult attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) research to assess childhood symptoms retrospectively, but little research has examined its factor structure and specificity in predicting ADHD versus other psychopathology. Consequently, this study had 2 goals: (a) to examine the Wender Utah Rating Scale's structure, and (b) to explicate the construct validity of this measure by relating factors from our structural analyses to other ADHD, psychopathology, and personality measures. Structural analyses in an adult community sample (N = 294) yielded a 3-factor structure of aggression (e.g., angry), internalizing distress (e.g., depressed), and academic difficulties (e.g., underachiever). Correlational and regression analyses indicated that these factors failed to display specificity in their associations with ADHD versus other psychopathology. Aggression and internalizing distress associated most strongly with indicators of externalizing (e.g., ill temper, manipulativeness) and internalizing psychopathology (e.g., depression, anxiety), respectively. Academic difficulties associated most strongly with ADHD symptoms, but these relations were relatively weak. Taken together, these findings raise concerns about the Wender Utah Rating Scale's construct validity, although additional longitudinal research is needed to clarify to what extent the Wender Utah Rating Scale validly assesses childhood ADHD symptoms.     

An Empowerment Evaluation Model for Sexual Assault Programs: Empirical Evidence of Effectiveness

Using an empowerment evaluation approach, the Sexual Assault and Rape Prevention (SARP) Evaluation Project brought together university researchers, public health evaluators, state funders, and program staff to provide evaluation training and consultation to all state-funded rape prevention and victim services programs in Michigan. In this paper, the specific activities of the SARP project are described, and process and outcome data are presented that address the effectiveness of this empowerment evaluation approach. Based on subjective reports from program staff and objective data obtained from state funders, results suggest that this evaluation model was successful in helping 90% of the prevention programs and 75% of the victim services programs successfully develop and launch program evaluations. One-year follow-up data indicate that 90% of the programs had sustained their evaluation efforts after the formal work of the SARP project had ended.     

Legal Prosecution of Perpetrators of Sexual Assault:

This article, based upon the personal experiences of the author, explores the implications for the client, counselor, and client-counselor relationship when the client initiates legal action against a perpetrator of sexual assault. Understanding the legal system, testifying in court, and the psychological effects of the sexual assault as impacted by the legal process are examples of the issues raised in the article. Ethical issues relating to treatment are discussed. Recommendations for the counselor's self-care are also presented.     

African American Women Survivors of Sexual Assault:

More attention has recently focused on the psychological experiences of women survivors of sexual assault. However, little work has examined the experiences of African American women survivors, particularly with regard to the impact of race and class on survivors' experiences. We address these limitations by presenting a socio-historical analysis of African American women's rape experiences. This analysis considers the relationship between sexual and economic oppression in African American women's lives. Second, we discuss the influences of these socio-historical factors on African American women's post-assault experiences. Finally, recommendations for therapy with African American women survivors are provided.     

An Examination of the Psychometric Properties and Factor Structure of the Feelings of Stigmatization Questionnaire

As the experience of stigma and its psychological dimensions require careful measurement, the purpose of this study was to examine the psychometric properties and factor structure of the Feelings of Stigmatization Questionnaire (FSQ). A total of 170 participants with psoriasis and 124 with atopic dermatitis (AD) completed the FSQ. AD participants self-rated AD severity, while psoriasis severity was determined by a clinician. Confirmatory (CFA) and exploratory factor analytic (EFA) techniques were used to examine the factor structure of the FSQ. The FSQ total score was not related to age, age at onset, illness duration or psoriasis severity but it was negatively associated with AD severity (r = −.25, p < .01). The original six-factor structure of the FSQ was not replicated in our sample. Using EFA, a fixed three-factor solution proved the most stable, with the dimensions of feeling flawed, anticipation of rejection and secrecy, and positive attitudes towards skin disease being identified.     

The Experiences in Close Relationship Scale (ECR)-Short Form: Reliability,Validity, and Factor Structure

Convergence between the MMPI–2 Restructured Form (MMPI–2–RF; Ben-Porath &; Tellegen, 2008) interpersonal scales and 2 interpersonal circumplex (IPC) measures was examined. University students (N = 405) completed the MMPI–2 and 2 IPC measures, the Interpersonal Adjectives Scales Revised Big Five Version (IASR–B5; Trapnell &; Wiggins, 1990) and the Inventory of Interpersonal Problems Circumplex (IIP–C; Horowitz, Alden, Wiggins, &; Pincus, 2000). Internal consistency was adequate for 3 of the 6 scales investigated. The majority of scales were located in their hypothesized locations, although magnitude of correlations was somewhat weaker than anticipated, partly owing to restricted range from using a healthy sample. The expected pattern of correlations that defines a circular matrix was demonstrated, lending support for the convergent and discriminant validity of the MMPI–2–RF interpersonal scales with respect to the assessment of interpersonal traits and problems.     

The Structure of Competence: Evaluating the Factor Structure of the Cognitive Therapy Rating Scale

The Cognitive Therapy Rating Scale (CTRS) is an observer-rated measure of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) treatment fidelity. Although widely used, the factor structure and psychometric properties of the CTRS are not well established. Evaluating the factorial validity of the CTRS may increase its utility for training and fidelity monitoring in clinical practice and research. The current study used multilevel exploratory factor analysis to examine the factor structure of the CTRS in a large sample of therapists (n = 413) and observations (n = 1,264) from community-based CBT training. Examination of model fit and factor loadings suggested that three within-therapist factors and one between-therapist factor provided adequate fit and the most parsimonious and interpretable factor structure. The three within-therapist factors included items related to (a) session structure, (b) CBT-specific skills and techniques, and (c) therapeutic relationship skills, although three items showed some evidence of cross-loading. All items showed moderate to high loadings on the single between-therapist factor. Results support continued use of the CTRS and suggest factors that may be a relevant focus for therapists, trainers, and researchers.     

Alternative Factor Structure for the Revised Self-Consciousness Scale

Confirmatory factor analysis (LISREL; Jöreskog & Sörbom, 1989) of data drawn from a sample of middle and senior school students was used to examine a variety of factor structures proposed in previous studies to underlie self-consciousness. Examination of the content of the Revised Self-Consciousness Scale (Scheier & Carver, 1985) suggested an alternative factor structure. This alternative structure comprised 2 private self-consciousness factors: Rumination on the General Self and Monitoring of Specific Aspects of Self. The public self-consciousness measure was retained as originally formulated with the exception of 1 item that was excluded from the final structure. This model of self-consciousness fit the data better than the 4 previously proposed structures.     

Factor Structure of Calhoun's Youth Suicide Scale

To assess the factor structure of Calhoun's Youth Suicide Scale (YSS), 191 consenting undergraduates in one sample and 240 consenting undergraduates in a second sample wee given the YSS during class. From the second sample, 152 subjects also took the YSS a second time about 1 month later. In the first sample, three factors, which accounted for 50.0% of the variance, emerged. They were: How the Parents were Viewed (in terms of psychological disturbance, likability, and blame); Expected Responses to the Bereaved Family (terms of tension and sympathy); and Empathy with Parents (whether the newspaper was viewed as correct in reporting the cause of death, how long parents were expected to grieve, and whether parents were expected to be liked). In the second sample, the same three factors emerged (accounting for 55.5% of the variance), with the exception of one item on Factor 3: expecting to like the parents. Congruence coefficients between the three factors in the two samples were .98, .94, and .78, respectively. Reliability correlations on individual items ranged from a low of .30 to a high of .61. These results indicate that the YSS is valid, stable, and moderately reliable for assessing reactions to youth suicide; thus, it would be a viable instrument for use in future research on reactions to suicide.