Comparing static and dynamic measures of affect intensity and affective lability: do they measure the same thing?

This was the first study to our knowledge to examine whether dispositional scales of affect intensity and affective lability map on to corresponding momentary affective dynamics. Specifically, we assessed whether the Affect Intensity Measure (AIM) and Affective Lability Scale (ALS) are differentially associated with mean, variability, and instability of negative affect (NA) and positive affect (PA). Young adults (n?=?135) completed the AIM, ALS, and 7 days of experience sampling assessments. Higher scores on the AIM were associated with variability and instability of NA and PA whereas the ALS was associated with mean levels of NA and PA. Neither the AIM nor the ALS were associated with reactivity to stressful, negative, or positive experiences in the moment. The AIM and ALS accounted for little variance in momentary affective dynamics and effects were generally small. Findings highlighted that static measures of dynamic phenomena poorly map onto momentary measures of affect in daily life. Theoretical and methodological implications are discussed.

     

Brief Book,Software, and Test Announcements

This study extended previous cross-cultural work regarding the tripartite model of anxiety and depression by developing Serbian translations of the Positive and Negative Affect Scale for Children (PANAS–C), the Physiological Hyperarousal Scale for Children (PH–C), and the Affect and Arousal Scale (AFARS). Characteristics of the scales were examined using 449 students (M age = 12.61 years). Applying item retention criteria established in other studies, PH–C, PANAS–C, and AFARS translations with psychometric properties similar to English-language versions were identified. Preliminary validation of the scales was conducted using a subset of 194 students (M age = 12.37 years) who also completed measures of anxiety and depression. Estimates of reliability, patterns of correlations among scales, and age and gender differences were consistent with previous studies with English-speaking samples. Findings regarding scale validity were mixed, although consistent with existing literature. Serbian translations of the PH–C, PANAS–C, and AFARS mirror the original English-language scales in terms of both strengths and weaknesses.     

Sustained attentional and disattentional abilities and arousability: Factor analysis and relationships to hypnotic susceptibility

The neurophysiologically separate dimensions of deeply focused, sustained attention and arousability are shown to be differentially related to hypnotic susceptibility. University undergraduates, 98 men and 112 women, were administered the Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility; the Group Stanford Hypnotic Susceptibility Scale, Form C (SHSS:C); and questionnaires that assessed attentional abilities (Differential Attentional Processes Inventory (DAPI), Tellegen Absorption Scale (TAS)), Extraversion (Eysenck Personality Questionnaire), strength of the nervous system (Strelau Temperament Scale (STS)), augmenting-reducing (Vando Reducer-Augmenter Scale (RAS)), and emotionality (Affect Intensity Measure (AIM)). Women were significantly higher on TAS, DAPI dual attention physical-cognitive scale, and AIM; men were significantly higher on TAS and STI Strength of Excitation Scale. Separate factor analyses for men and women separately yielded fairly similar four-factor solutions. The first major factor, defined by DAPI Moderately Focused Attention and Dual Attention scales, represented moderately sustained attention in a complex environment with limited interference from competing stimuli. The extremely involved and focused attention factor, defined by the TAS and DAPI Extremely Focused Attention Scale, had hypnotic susceptibility loaded more strongly for men than women. The arousability factor was defined by EPQ Extraversion, STI Mobility of Nervous System (MNS) scale, and RAS. The neo-Pavlovian nervous system processes factor was defined by the STI Strength of Excitation and Strength of Inhibition scales; the STI MNS scale also loaded on this factor for men. Only for women were introverts more hypnotizable than extraverts. Results support H. J. Crawford and J. H. Gruzelier's (1992) in E. Fromm and M. Nash (Eds.) Contemporary Perspectives in Hypnosis Research (pp. 227–266) New York: Guildford Press) neurophysiological model of hypnosis that proposes that highly hypnotizable persons have a more efficient fronto-limbic sustained attentional and disattentional system.     

Relations among positive affect, negative affect, and somatic symptoms in a medically ill patient sample

The Positive and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS), a brief measure of Positive and Negative Affect, may be useful in assessing mood of medical patients because it does not include somatic items frequently confounded with medical conditions. In previous research Positive and Negative Affect have been independent and uncorrelated, and Negative Affect but not Positive Affect has been positively correlated with somatic symptoms. However, relationships between variables may vary in different populations, and there is relatively little information on Positive and Negative Affect in medical patients. In the current study, the PANAS was used to assess the relationships among Positive Affect, Negative Affect, and somatic symptoms and pain in a medically ill hospital population. Positive and Negative Affect scores were positively correlated and for patients reporting pain, Positive Affect scores were positively correlated with pain intensity. Results from this and other studies indicate that Positive and Negative Affect are independent but in some populations may be correlated; positive affects such as hopefulness may co-occur with both somatic complaints and psychological distress.     

人格特质与主观幸福感:情绪调节的中介作用

通过对1163名大学生被试进行人格特质、情绪调节策略的使用以及主观幸福感的测查,本研究探讨了气质性人格特质(神经质和外倾性)这种稳定的内在心理结构对主观幸福感产生影响的可能机制。结果发现:(1)除直接影响个体的主观幸福感外,神经质和外倾性还会通过重新评价策略的使用间接影响主观幸福感;(2)人格特质和重新评价策略的使用可以有效预测个体主观幸福感的变异;(3)习惯性地使用表达抑制策略对个体的主观幸福感并没有显著的影响。这些结果表明重新评价策略的使用在人格特质对主观幸福感的影响中具有重要的中介作用。该发现对进一步制定改善和提高个体的主观幸福感的干预措施具有重要的启示和指导意义。     

Looking forward to tomorrow: The buffering effect of a daily optimism intervention

This research demonstrates the effectiveness of a brief daily self-applied optimism intervention in an adult normal population. Participants completed Life Orientation Test-Revised, Positive and Negative Affect Scale, Satisfaction with Life Scale, and Burnout Measure scales before, immediately after, and one month after the intervention. At baseline, optimism intervention group (N = 36) and control group (N = 41) were statistically similar on the variables of interest. At post-test, and also one month later, the intervention group demonstrated reduced pessimism, negative affect, and emotional exhaustion, although optimism, positive affect, and life satisfaction did not increase. Higher initial optimism increased the intervention effect for the optimism group, but not for the control group, by diminishing negative affect and emotional exhaustion, and increasing optimism. Sixty-one percent of the activities mentioned by the control group participants focused on duties and work, compared to 28% in the optimism condition. No correlations were found between initial optimism or pessimism, and the type of activities mentioned.     

An Investigation of the Relationships among Negative Affect, Difficulties in Emotion Regulation, and Features of Borderline Personality Disorder

This study investigated the indirect effects of problematic emotion regulation on features of Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) when accounting for negative affect in 456 participants from two distinct geographic regions. Participants completed the Affect Intensity Measure (AIM), Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS), the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ), and the Borderline Symptom List (BSL). Results from this study supported a model in which there were significant indirect effects of both a lack of emotional clarity and limited access to emotion regulation strategies on features of BPD when accounting for negative affective intensity. Results also supported a second model in which there were significant indirect effects of both limited access to emotion regulation strategies and difficulties engaging in goal-directed behavior on features of BPD when accounting for negative affective reactivity. The results highlight important inter-relationships among features of BPD, difficulties regulating emotions, and negative affective intensity and reactivity.     

Convergent validity of the Depression-Happiness Scale with the Memorial University of Newfoundland Scale of Happiness

The Depression-Happiness Scale and the Memorial University of Newfoundland Scale of Happiness were administered to 52 Northern Irish university students. Higher scores on the Depression-Happiness Scale were significantly associated with higher scores on the Memorial University of Newfoundland Scale and the subscale scores of Positive Affect and Positive Experiences and with lower scores on Negative Affect and Negative Experiences. These data provide further support for the convergent validity of the Depression-Happiness Scale.     

Differential predictability of four dimensions of affect intensity

Individual differences in affect intensity are typically assessed with the Affect Intensity Measure (AIM). Previous factor analyses suggest that the AIM is comprised of four weakly correlated factors: Positive Affectivity, Negative Reactivity, Negative Intensity and Positive Intensity or Serenity. However, little data exist to show whether its four factors relate to other measures differently enough to preclude use of the total scale score. The present study replicated the four-factor solution and found that subscales derived from the four factors correlated differently with criterion variables that assess personality domains, affective dispositions, and cognitive patterns that are associated with emotional reactions. The results show that use of the total AIM score can obscure relationships between specific features of affect intensity and other variables and suggest that researchers should examine the individual AIM subscales.     

Self-Report Measures of Boredom: An Updated Review of the Literature

A detailed review of the psychometric measures of boredom was published approximately 12 years ago (Vodanovich, 2003). Since that time, numerous studies have been conducted on existing scales, and new measures of boredom have been developed. Given these assessment advancements, an updated review of self-report boredom scales is warranted. The primary focus of the current review is research published since 2003, and it includes a total of 16 boredom scales. The measures reviewed consist of two trait assessments (Boredom Proneness Scale, Boredom Susceptibility subscale of the Sensation Seeking Scale), five context-specific trait boredom scales (Boredom Coping Scale, Leisure Boredom Scale, Free Time Boredom Scale, Sexual Boredom Scale, Relational Boredom Scale), three assessments of state boredom (Multidimensional State Boredom Scale, State Boredom Measure, Boredom Experience Scale), and six context-specific state boredom measures–Lee's Job Boredom Scale, Dutch Boredom Scale, Boredom Coping Scale (Academic), the Boredom subscale of the Achievement Emotions Questionnaire, Academic Boredom Scale, Precursors to Boredom Scale. In addition to providing a review of these measures, a brief critique of each scale is included, as well as suggestions for needed research focus.     

Attributional style and self-esteem as predictors of psychological well being

Background: this study sets out to examine to what extent attributional style (internal, stable, global) and self-esteem predicted positive affect and self-reported happiness in a normal, non-clinical, population of young people in their early 20s. Method: 88 participants completed five questionnaires: Attributional Style Questionnaire (ASQ in both positive and negative situations), Bradburn Affect Scales (Positive Affect, Negative Affect, and Affect Balance Scale), Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale Gurin Happiness Measure, and Oxford Happiness Inventory (OHI). Results: regressional analysis showed that the ASQ was the significant predictor of happiness accounting for 18% of variance. The ASQ in positive and negative situations was significantly inversely correlated with self-esteem. Further, with happiness (the OHI) as dependent variable and attributional style, self-esteem, and demographic variables as independent variables, self-esteem and attributional style (in positive situations) were the significant predictors of happiness accounting for 55% of the total variance. Conclusion: the results indicated that optimistic attributional style in positive situations was a stronger predictor of self-reported happiness than optimistic attributional style in negative situations. The implications of the findings are discussed in terms of cognitive strategies for changing pessimism into optimism thus enhancing happiness or psychological well-being.     

A Hostility Scale for the California Psychological Inventory: MMPI,Observer Q-Sort,and Big-Five Correlates

Using two samples, we developed and validated a hostility scale that can be scored from the California Psychological Inventory (CPI) and serves as an alternate for the Cook-Medley Hostility Scale (Ha; Cook & Medley, 1954). The CPI Hostility (H) scale consists of 33 items that are either duplicates or close equivalents of specific He items, and the two scales correlate at least .90 in samples differing in sex. The H and Ho scales show a similar pattern of correlations with conceptually relevant MMPI scales and with observer-rated personality attributes tapping Barefoot, Peterson, et al.'s (1991) five hostility categories of Hostile Affect, Cynicism, Aggressive Responding, Social Avoidance, and Hostile Attributions. These findings provide evidence for the equivalence of the two hostility scales, as well as external validation for those personality characteristics that are purported to underlie the construct of hostility as tapped by both the original Ho and the new CPI H scale.     

Reliability and validity of the Multiple Affect Adjective Check List - Revised

A recent factor analysis of the Multiple Affect Adjective Check List (MAACL) changed the Anxiety, Depression, and Hostility scales from bipolar to unipolar scales and added two new scales: Positive Affect and Sensation Seeking. Internal reliability of the MAACL-R scales, computed for normal and patient samples, was adequate for state and trait forms except for Sensation Seeking. Test-retest reliability in college students was higher for the trait form with retest intervals of from 2 to 8 weeks than for the state form with retest intervals of from 2 to 5 days. The pattern of correlations among self-, peer, and counselor ratings and the MAACL-R scales for normal and patient samples indicates improved discriminant validity and equally good convergent validity as the old scales. The use of standard scores that are indexed to the number of items checked reduced scale intercorrelations by controlling the acquiescence set.The financial support of the Weldon Springs Endowment Fund, University of Missouri at Kansas City, toward the completion of this research project is gratefully acknowledged.     

Affect intensity and the appraisal of emotion

The present study investigated the association between a personality trait known as affect intensity and the perceived qualities of emotions. Subjects completed the Affect Intensity Measure (AIM), and they rated the phenomenological qualities and causal dimensions of previous emotional experiences involving happiness, pride, anxiety, and hate. The results showed that high and low scorers on the AIM reported different perceptions of certain qualities of the emotional event, independent of the emotion's valence; subjects with high scores on the AIM rated their emotions as higher in intensity, frequency, and vividness of recall. In contrast, further analyses revealed little relation between AIM scores and causal dimension ratings of the emotions. However, within-subject analyses indicated that the emotions did differ in their perceived causes, thus supporting predictions from Weiner's attributional model of emotion. The results are discussed in terms of the need for a complex approach to the study of emotion which incorporates intersubject and intrasubject differences.     

Affect intensity and cardiac arousal.

Relationships between affect intensity and basal, evoked, and perceived cardiac arousal were investigated in 3 experiments. Affect intensity was assessed using Larsen and Diener's (1987) Affect Intensity Measure (AIM). Cardiac arousal was evoked with exercise in the 1st study and with mental arithmetic in the 2nd and 3rd. Perceived cardiac arousal was measured under optimal conditions using a standard heartbeat discrimination procedure. Women as a group scored higher on the AIM. Affect intensity was unrelated to basal or evoked cardiac arousal and was negatively related to perceived cardiac arousal in all 3 studies. Data suggest that affect intensity, although unrelated to actual physiological arousal, is negatively related to the accuracy with which individuals perceive their own arousal. Results are discussed within the context of an expanded arousal-regulation model (Blascovich, 1990).     

Examination of the Eyberg Child Behavior Inventory Discrepancy Hypothesis

ABSTRACT

This study examined the Eyberg Child Behavior Inventory (ECBI) discrepancy hypothesis, which asserts that a discrepancy in score elevations on the ECBI Intensity and Problem Scales is related to problematic parenting styles. The Intensity Scale measures the frequency of child disruptive behavior, and the Problem Scale measures parent perception of their child's behavior as problematic. In a sample of 216 female caregivers of 3-to7-year-old children, the magnitude of discrepancy between T scores on the two ECBI scales was found to predict parental tolerance for child misbehavior. A one-standard-deviation difference in ECBI T scores identified (a) parents intolerant of their child's misbehavior when the Problem score was highest and (b) overly permissive parents when the Intensity score was highest.     

Associations among alexithymia, positive and negative emotions, and self-defeating personality

This study examined the associations among 210 college students' alexithymia scores and three emotional orientation scores. Students completed the following three self-report instruments: 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale, 20-item Positive and Negative Affect Scale, and 24-item Self-defeating Personality Scale. As predicted, a linear regression model indicated that alexithymia was associated with negative emotional activation, self-defeating personality, and inversely associated with positive emotional activation. These three affect orientations accounted for 27% of the variance associated with subjects' cognitive-affective communication difficulties expressing their emotions. A second linear regression model indicated that negative emotion activation was significantly associated with self-defeating personality, and positive emotion activation was significantly inversely associated with self-defeating personality.     

Development and Validation of the Xhosa Translations of the Beck Inventories: 3. Concurrent and Convergent Validity

This article provides data on the validity of the Xhosa versions of the Beck Depression Inventory-II (XBDI-II), the Beck Hopelessness Scale (XBHS) and the Beck Anxiety Inventory (XBAI) based on a sample of 122 Xhosa respondents which included students and patients. For patients, clinicians completed rating scales of Depression and Anxiety symptoms. In tests of concurrent validity, depressed patients had significantly higher scores on the XBDI-II and XBHS than students or patients who were not depressed. Similarly anxious patients had higher scores on the XBAI than students and patients who were not anxious. Correlations with clinicians' ratings were:.91 for XBDI-II scores and depression ratings, and.88 for XBAI scores and anxiety ratings. Correlations between the three translated scales were similar to those for the original scales. These analyses provide evidence that the translated scales have levels of concurrent and convergent validity comparable to the originals.     

Factor structure and interpretation of the K10

The Kessler 10 Psychological Distress Scale (K10) is a brief 10-item questionnaire designed to measure the level of distress and severity associated with psychological symptoms in population surveys. It is being used widely, including in the World Health Organization World Mental Health Survey, and as a clinical outcome measure, although little information is available about the structure of the measure. The factorial composition of the K10 was examined in a prospective community survey and cross-validated in a separate large community survey. The K10 was found to consist of 4 factors and a 2-factor second-order factor structure. This was stable across the 2 waves of the prospective study and the Australian National Survey of Mental Health and Well-Being. The 4 factors, labeled Nervous, Negative Affect, Fatigue, and Agitation, were consistent with the original scales from which the items were taken. The 2 second-order factors represent Depression and Anxiety.