A short scale to measure self-righteousness

Two studies were conducted which created and tested a scale to measure self-righteousness. Self-righteousness was defined as the conviction that one's behaviors or beliefs are correct, especially in contrast to alternate behaviors or beliefs. In the first study, a 4-item scale to measure general self-righteousness was derived which demonstrated adequate levels of internal consistency and was related to dogmatism and ambiguity intolerance. In the second study, the items were worded to be specific to running a race. This study succeeded in demonstrating that the scale possessed predictive validity. This study also demonstrated the usefulness of rewording the general items to make them specific about the content of self-righteousness.     

A short measure of Eriksonian ego identity

Developed a new measure of Erikson's (1950, 1959) concept of ego identity which would meet the following criteria: (a) that it be short, with an acceptable level of reliability; (b) that it be objective and easily scored; and (c) that it be free of response set contamination. A 12-item scale (Ego Identity Scale) with a forced choice format was constructed. Two further studies were conducted to test the validity of the scale. These studies showed that the Ego Identity Scale correlated as predicted with measures Of locus of control, intimacy, dogmatism, Tomkins' Left, occupational commitment, and political commitment. It also correlated in the predicted direction with measures of interpersonal trust and moral commitment though these correlations did not reach statistical significance.     

The structure of economic beliefs

Over 250 subjects completed nine questionnaires concerned specifically with economic issues such as work, saving, taxation etc. Five of the Attitude scales—attitudes to gambling, money, saving, social security (welfare) and taxation—were first submitted to factor analysis. In each case a meaningful and interpretable factor structure emerged. Thereafter the total of 38 variables were subjected to a VARIMAX factor analysis which yielded an interpretable two factor solution: individualist-collectivist, tough-minded/tender-minded. The implications of this two factor theory of economic ideology are discussed.     

A short measure of the need for affect

Two studies are presented to introduce a 10-item short form of the Need for Affect Questionnaire (NAQ-S; cf. Maio & Esses, 2001 ). Study 1 was based on 4 independent samples (German or English language; N (total) = 2,151) and demonstrated the expected factorial structure of the NAQ-S; its measurement invariance with respect to gender, age, and education; and the predicted associations with relevant personality measures. A latent state-trait analysis conducted in Study 2 (N = 140) suggests that most of the reliable variance of the NAQ-S represents stable individual differences.     

The Drinking Expectancy Questionnaire: A revised measure of alcohol-related beliefs

Alcohol-related expectancies have been recently proposed as potentially important determinants of drinking behavior. This study describes the development of a New Zealand measure of such beliefs, the Drinking Expectancy Questionnaire (DEQ). Items selected through interviews, literature review, and the modification of other relevant questionnaires were piloted on 333 drinkers in a community sample and 275 college students. Factor analyses of both samples revealed nine alcohol reinforcement domains relating to assertiveness, affective change, sexual enhancement, social enhancement, relaxation, cognitive impairment, dependence, carelessness, and aggression. The potential clinical and research possibilities using this revised expectancy measure are briefly discussed, along with the scale's strength and weaknesses.The financial assistance of the Alcoholic Liquor Advisory Council of New Zealand in conducting this study is gratefully acknowledged.     

French adaptation of the Mini-IPIP: A short measure of the Big Five

IntroductionThe Big Five, or the Five-Factor Model (FFM) of personality, is the dominant model in trait psychology. Instruments to assess personality traits are usually long and not available in French. The Mini-International Personality Item Pool (Mini-IPIP) is a brief measure evaluating personality traits according to the Big Five model with promising psychometric properties.ObjectiveThe main purposes of this study were to develop and validate a French adaptation of the Mini-International Personality Item Pool.MethodIn Study 1, adaptation procedures that led to the translation of the French version as well as steps to maximize equivalence are described, in addition to internal consistency, temporal stability, and factor structure within a sample of 139 participants. In study 2, confirmatory factor analysis was carried out with a sample of 1308 participants, and convergent validity was explored with several pertinent constructs.ResultsInternal consistency and test-retest correlations over a four-week period suggest adequate reliability, with coefficients respectively ranging from .64 to .81 and .74 to .89. Exploratory factor analysis suggested a sharply delineated structure. In Study 2, confirmatory factor analyzes revealed a five-factor solution consistent with the Big Five model, and convergent validity with several constructs was detailed.ConclusionOverall, results pointed to a satisfactory equivalence between the original and the adapted instrument. The satisfactory indices of reliability and validity of the Mini-IPIP warrant the use of the French adaptation of the Mini-IPIP.     

The Meta-Cognitive Beliefs Questionnaire: development of a measure of obsessional beliefs

A 67 item self-report questionnaire called the Meta-Cognitive Beliefs Questionnaire (MCBQ) was developed to assess endorsement of beliefs about the importance of control and negative consequences associated with unwanted, ego-dystonic intrusive thoughts, images and impulses. The MCBQ and a battery of questionnaires that assessed symptoms and cognitions of worry, obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety, and depression were administered to large samples of undergraduate students. Beliefs about control of intrusive thoughts and perceived negative consequences due to uncontrolled mental intrusions had a unique significant relationship with obsessions, and to a lesser extent, worry. These findings are consistent with current cognitive behavioral theories that suggest an important role for meta-cognitive beliefs in the pathogenesis of obsessions.     

The NPI-16 as a short measure of narcissism

Narcissism has received increased attention in the past few decades as a sub-clinical individual difference with important everyday consequences, such as self-enhancement in perceptions of one’s own behavior and attributes. The most widespread measure used by non-clinical researchers, the 40-item Narcissistic Personality Inventory or NPI-40, captures a range of different facets of the construct but its length may prohibit its use in settings where time pressure and respondent fatigue are major concerns. In this article, we draw from the NPI-40 set of items to create and validate a shorter, unidimensional measure, the NPI-16. In five studies, we show that this short NPI closely parallels the NPI-40 in its relation to other personality measures and dependent variables. We conclude that the NPI-16 has notable face, internal, discriminant, and predictive validity and that it can serve as an alternative measure of narcissism when situations do not allow the use of longer inventories.     

Development and validation of a scale to measure beliefs about women managers

This paper presents preliminary evidence on the internal consistency and validity of a scale designed to measure the degree to which one believes women managers experience a greater number of obstacles and more critical judgments about their work performance as compared to managerial men (the Stereotype Beliefs about Women Managers scale; SBWMS). Survey data from 1,337 managerial and nonmanagerial men and women employed by a large manufacturing organization revealed that the 6-item scale possessed a single factor. Significant mean group differences and correlations between the SBWMS and a number of organizationallyrelevant measures provide good preliminary support for the scale’s validity.     

Development and validation of a scale to measure beliefs about women managers

This paper presents preliminary evidence on the internal consistency and validity of a scale designed to measure the degree to which one believes women managers experience a greater number of obstacles and more critical judgments about their work performance as compared to managerial men (the Stereotype Beliefs about Women Managers scale; SBWMS). Survey data from 1,337 managerial and nonmanagerial men and women employed by a large manufacturing organization revealed that the 6-item scale possessed a single factor. Significant mean group differences and correlations between the SBWMS and a number of organizationallyrelevant measures provide good preliminary support for the scale’s validity.     

Development and validation of a short form aggressive beliefs and attitudes scale

This research outlines six studies (total N = 3867) that develop and validate an Aggressive Beliefs and Attitudes — Short Form scale for use within the normal nonclinical adult population (e.g., organizational psychology). In the first two samples, exploratory factor analysis reduced the original 30 item scale to a shorter, more parsimonious, eight item measure. In the third sample, confirmatory factor analysis found that the proposed model and items fit the data extremely well. Examination of the nomological network underlying the new measure in Samples 3–4 displayed relationships with positive affect, negative affect, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and neuroticism ranging from r = .23 to − .23, while relationships with anger, hostility, physical aggression, and verbal aggression ranged from r = .49 to .30. Finally, in two criterion-related validity studies the relationships between the aggressive beliefs and attitudes scales, both original and short forms, and workplace deviance were examined with independent samples of employed adults. The short form scale was significantly related to workplace deviance in both samples (r = .37 and .43). Furthermore, these relationships were of identical magnitude to the full 30 item measure, suggesting that the short form scale comparably captures aggression-related behaviors with a greatly reduced number of items.     

Validation of a Swedish short self-report measure of core affect

This research aimed at validating two self-report composite rating scales of core affect that are useful when quick assessments are required, for instance, of current mood or recalled, anticipated, and experienced emotional reactions. The ratings were derived from the Swedish Core Affect Scales (SCAS) comprising six self-report rating scales of the two orthogonal dimensions of core affect, valence (unpleasantness-pleasantness) and activation (quietness-excitement). In three samples of university students who were requested to rate current moods, affect-inducing sounds, or affect-inducing pictures, the composite ratings were compared to SCAS, two widely used graphical rating scales of valence and activation, and skin conductance responses and the acceleratory peak of heart rate. Three different rating formats were also compared. The results showed that the composite ratings were reliable and yielded the expected correlations with the other ratings and with the physiological affect indicators. No effects of rating format were detected. It is concluded that the composite ratings of valence and activation may be used if quick assessments are called for. Choices can be made of any of three rating formats depending on purpose with the assessments.     

A short self-report measure of problems with executive function suitable for administration via the Internet

This article describes a short self-report measure of problems with executive function designed for use in Internet-mediated research. In Study 1, participants completed the online measure (Webexec) using a browser but under laboratory conditions. They also completed a paper self-report measure of executive problems (the Dysexecutive Questionnaire; DEX) and three objective tasks involving executive function: reverse digit span, semantic fluency (unconstrained), and semantic fluency (constrained). Webexec scores correlated positively with the DEX and negatively with the three executive tasks. Further evidence of construct validity came from Study 2, in which Webexec scores correlated positively with both use of cannabis and prospective memory problems reported in an online drug questionnaire. Webexec thus appears suitable for online research with normal populations.     

A logic of intentions and beliefs

Intentions are an important concept in Artificial Intelligence and Cognitive Science. We present a formal theory of intentions and beliefs based on Discourse Representation Theory that captures many of their important logical properties. Unlike possible worlds approaches, this theory does not assume that agents are perfect reasoners, and gives a realistic view of their internal architecture; unlike most representational approaches, it has anobjective semantics, and does not rely on anad hoc labeling of the internal states of agents. We describe a minimal logic for intentions and beliefs that is sound and complete relative to our semantics. We discuss several additional axioms, and the constraints on the models that validate them.     

The CORE‐10: A short measure of psychological distress for routine use in the psychological therapies

Background: There is a need for a generic, short, and easy‐to‐use assessment measure for common presentations of psychological distress in UK primary care mental health settings. This paper sets out the development of the CORE‐10 in response to this need. Method: Items were drawn from the CORE‐OM and 10 items were selected according to a combination of usefulness, coverage of item clusters, and statistical procedures. Three CORE‐OM datasets were employed in the development phase: (1) a primary care sample, (2) a sample from an MRC platform trial of enhanced collaborative care of depression in primary care, and (3) a general population sample derived from the Office of National Statistics Psychiatric Morbidity Follow‐up survey. A fourth dataset comprising a sample from an occupational health setting was used to evaluate the CORE‐10 in its standalone format. Results: The internal reliability (alpha) of the CORE‐10 was .90 and the score for the CORE‐10 correlated with the CORE‐OM at .94 in a clinical sample and .92 in a non‐clinical sample. The clinical cut‐off score for general psychological distress was 11.0 with a reliable change index (90% CI) of 6. For depression, the cut‐off score for the CORE‐10 was 13 and yielded sensitivity and specificity values of .92 (CI=.83–1.0) and 0.72 (CI=.60–.83) respectively. Conclusion: The CORE‐10 is an acceptable and feasible instrument that has good psychometric properties and is practical to use with people presenting with common mental health problems in primary care settings.     

A measure of autonomy

This article reports the development of a measure of indicidual differences in autonomous rule compliance. The autonomy scale (a short, easily administered CPI based test) was developed within the framework of a multidimensional, role-theoretical model of moral development. Five samples were used in the construction of the scale. Two of the samples (total n = 111) were used to derive the autonomy scale. The items for the scale were derived through the sequential use of two common item selection stategies: criterion keying and factor analysis. An initial set of 55 CPI items were derived using an "ideal" autonomy Q-sort profile as a selection criterion, and an Alpha factor solution was used to reduce this initial pool to a final set of 25 items. Several analyses were conducted using three additional samples (total n = 245) to estimate the reliability of the scale and determine its validity. The results of these analyses provide initial evidence for the content, criterion-realted, and construct validity of the scale and indicate that the measure has an adequate reliability.