Preliminary validation of a Spanish version of the Sport Motivation Scale

The Sport Motivation Scale was developed in French and later translated into English and validated by Pelletier, et al. in 1995. It is based on the principles of self-determination theory. In this study the scale was translated into Spanish to assess and validate it for a sample of 275 athletes (78 women and 197 men) whose mean age was 21.3 yr. (SD=3.8) and who represented eight sports (track and field, tennis, swimming, waterpolo, soccer, basketball, handball, and volleyball). The Spanish version showed satisfactory internal consistency (Cronbach alpha of .70 to .80) and temporal stability (test-retest r = .69 to .74) over a 4-wk. period. A confirmatory factor analysis partially supported the seven-factor structure. Correlations among the subscales indicated a simplex pattern supporting the construct validity of the scale. Sex differences were found. Taken together, these findings support use of the Spanish version for assessment of motivation in sport.     

Construct validation of a state version of the Social Physique Anxiety Scale among young women

This study examined the validity of a state version of the Social Physique Anxiety Scale (Hart, Leary & Rejeski, 1989) by conducting tests of concurrent and discriminative validation. Participants were four separate samples of young women (N=221) who exercised ≤ 2 days/week and who participated in various experiments examining body image and self-presentation. Participants' scores on the state SPAS (S-SPAS) were significantly correlated, in expected directions, with scores on both trait and state measures of body image and self-presentation, and with body mass index (BMI). In addition, S-SPAS scores discriminated between women who exercised in a mixed-sex versus a same-sex environment, but trait SPAS scores did not. Together, these results provide evidence of construct validity of a state version of the SPAS and demonstrate that social physique anxiety can be conceptualized and measured as a situational variable. The S-SPAS, rather than the trait SPAS, should be employed in experiments designed to detect differences in state social physique anxiety.     

Psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the Revised Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2 with athletes

The aim of this work was to develop a Spanish adaptation of the Revised Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2. The scale was translated and its psychometric properties were analyzed with data from a sample of 149 athletes. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were performed which supported a 16-item CSAI-2R assessing the three hypothesised dimensions of anxiety: Somatic anxiety, Cognitive anxiety, and Self-confidence. Overall fit of the model was good with a value of .97 for Comparative and Non-Normed Fit Indexes, and .045 for Root Mean Square Error of Approximation. Cronbach alpha coefficients for the factors ranged from .79 to .83. It is concluded that this version shows adequate properties, in terms of its dimensionality and internal consistency. Guidelines are also provided for future research on its validity as a measure of state anxiety in competitive situations.     

Psychometric properties and clinical cut-off scores of the Spanish version of the Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents

This study examined the reliability and validity evidence drawn from the scores of the Spanish version of the Slovenian-developed Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents (SASA; Puklek, 1997; Puklek & Vidmar, 2000) using a community sample (Study 1) and a clinical sample (Study 2). Confirmatory factor analysis in Study 1 replicated the 2-factor structure found by the original authors in a sample of Slovenian adolescents. Test-retest reliability was adequate. Furthermore, the SASA correlated significantly with other social anxiety scales, supporting concurrent validity evidence in Spanish adolescents. The results of Study 2 confirmed the correlations between the SASA and other social anxiety measures in a clinical sample. In addition, findings revealed that the SASA can effectively discriminate between adolescents with a clinical diagnosis of social anxiety disorder (SAD) and those without this disorder. Finally, cut-off scores for the SASA are provided for Spanish adolescents.     

Factor structure of the Spanish version of the Spence Children Anxiety Scale (SCAS)

This paper presents the Spanish version of the Spence Children Anxiety Scale (SCAS), a rating scale for children and adolescents assessing anxiety disorders as they appear in the DSM-IV. SCAS scores were subjected to confirmatory factor analyses in a sample of 1671 children 10 to 17 years old. Results supported the proposed structure of six interrelated scales. This structure is completely invariant (except for means) in boys and girls and across age groups. Overall, girls scored slightly higher than boys. The relationship of SCAS scores with the child's age was nonexistent or very low and negative. The least frequent anxiety problems among children and adolescents were panic attacks and agoraphobia. Problems that most frequently presented extreme high scores were obsessive-compulsive disorder and social phobia. It is concluded that the Spanish version of the SCAS can confidently be used in the assessment of anxiety disorders in children.     

Factor structure of a Spanish version of the Revised Children's Manifest Anxiety Scale in Uruguay

The Revised Children's Manifest Anxiety Scale (RCMAS) was translated into Spanish and administered to 1,423 pupils in Grades 1 thru 12 in Uruguay. An orthogonal varimax rotation was performed, which revealed three factors of anxiety. These factors are quite similar to those found through factor analyses in the RCMAS for American children. A discussion of the factor structure and possible use of this instrument in Latin American countries is presented.     

Relationships Among the Sport Competition Anxiety Test,the Sport Anxiety Scale,and the Collegiate Hockey Worry Scale

This study examined the degree to which the Sport Competition Anxiety Test (SCAT; Martens, 1977) and the Sport Anxiety Scale (SAS; Smith, Smoll, & Schutz, 1990) shared variance with the four subscales of the Collegiate Hockey Worry Scale (CHWS; Dunn, 1999)a sport-specific measure of athletes' dispositional tendencies to worry about performance failure, negative social evaluation, physical danger, and situational uncertainty. Participants were 178 male intercollegiate ice hockey players. Correlation and regression analyses reinforced the links between worries about failure and negative social evaluation to competitive trait anxiety (CTA). However, neither the SCAT nor the SAS shared more than 5.8% of the variance surrounding athletes' worries pertaining to physical danger and situational uncertainty. Findings are discussed in the context of Martens, Vealey, and Burtons' (1990) recommendation to develop instruments with separate subscales measuring different situational components of CTA.     

The Carroll Scale for Depression--the German version and validation

The Carroll Rating Scale for Depression, first published by Carroll et al. in 1981, has been translated into German. 28 out-patients and a control-group of 28 normals were submitted to the CRS and, for purposes of validation, to the BECK scale and the diagram HARD. The Carroll Rating Scale is directly based on the Hamilton Rating Scale, but, in contrast, it represents a self rating that should be useful for longitudinal studies.     

Spanish version of the Body Appreciation Scale (BAS) for adolescents

The need to study the positive aspects of body image led to the design of the Body Appreciation Scale (BAS). The aim of the present study was to develop a Spanish adaptation of the BAS for adolescents, testing its factor structure, construct validity and any differences between girls and boys. Participants were 312 adolescents aged between 12 and 20; there were 148 females and 164 males. The validation analysis of the BAS revealed a one-factor structure with adequate internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = .908) and construct validity (correlations with body mass index, influence of the body shape model, perceived stress, coping strategies, self-esteem and variables from the Eating Disorders Inventory-2), as well as significant differences between boys and girls (p < .01). The BAS is suitable for administration in a Spanish adolescent population as a way of analysing the positive aspects of body image.     

Development of a Greek version of the Sport Motivation Scale

The aim of the present study was to examine preliminarily the validity of a Greek version of the 1995 Sport Motivation Scale of Pelletier, Fortier, Vallerand, Tuson, Briere, and Blais. For 134 athletes the seven subscales had moderate to good internal consistency (Cronbach coefficients alpha from .64 to .78). Confirmatory factor analysis with nested factor models supported the structural validity of the inventory. Moreover, correlations of scores on the subscales with a measure of task and ego orientation as well as with athletes' self-reported effort in training were in the expected direction.     

Psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the Flow State Scale

The purpose of this research was to examine the psychometric properties of a Spanish translation of the Flow State Scale (FSS; Jackson & Marsh, 1996). This instrument is used to assess the Flow State in participants of physical activity, although it can be adapted to other contexts (such as work, educational contexts, etc.). This construct can be considered the optimal psychological state to carry out an activity, being closely related to motivation and personal enjoyment (Csikszentmihalyi, 1997). A sample of 2036 athletes was recruited from diverse sports activities. The results revealed satisfactory validity and internal consistency of the instrument, obtaining a factor model made up of a main factor and nine subscales. The correlations between motivational orientations and the flow state are highlighted. The Spanish translation of this instrument is found to be acceptable, with similar psychometric properties as the original scale, although future research in other contexts is needed to support these outcomes.     

Psychometric properties of a Spanish version of the Dyadic Adjustment Scale

The Dyadic Adjustment Scale (DAS) is a self-report instrument measuring marital satisfaction, which has been widely used in different cultures. In Spain, there are to date no studies analysing the psychometric properties of the scale in functional and dysfunctional couples, nor performing independent factor analysis of men and women's data. The objective of this study is to determine some psychometric properties of a Spanish DAS version on a sample of 915 participants: 403 who requested couple therapy, and 512 who did not request therapy. Results support the reliability of the instrument for both subsamples. The confirmatory factor analysis showed a four-factor internal structure that corresponds to the one proposed by the author of the original scale. Furthermore, the Spanish DAS has high discriminant power between both subsamples, and presents as a valid and reliable instrument to measure marital quality in Spanish couples who request couple therapy and those who do not request it.     

German version of the Kuwait University Anxiety Scale: psychometric parameters

A German translation of the Kuwait University Anxiety Scale, written originally in Arabic, was prepared. A sample of 207 men and women German college students was recruited. Coefficient alpha was .88, whereas the item-remainder correlations ranged from .21 to .63, denoting good internal consistency. The correlation of the scale with the German form of the Trait Anxiety Scale was .76, indicating high criterion-related validity. Three factors were identified: General, Somatic, and Cognitive/Affective Anxiety. German students scored lower (less anxious) than students from the U.S. and 18 Arab countries. The sex difference was not significant for the German sample.     

Adaptation of the Sydney Attribution Scale in a Spanish college population

The aim of this study was to analyse the psychometric properties of the Sydney Attribution Scale in a sample of 1,508 college students. Factor analysis identified six factors: Success/Ability, Success/Effort, Success/External Causes, Failure/Ability, Failure/Effort, and Failure/External Causes. Success and failure factors accounted for an adequate percentage of the variance. Internal consistency was acceptable, similar in the success scales and in the failure scales, and higher in the internal scales than in the external scales. The results also showed a clear predictable pattern of relationships between dimensions of self-attribution, and between these dimensions and several measures of general self-efficacy, intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, satisfaction with the studies, satisfaction with performance, and satisfaction with knowledge, which supports the construct validity of the SAS.     

Psychometric properties of Spanish version of the Mini-Mental Adjustment to Cancer Scale

Background/ObjectiveThe aim of the study was to examine the factor structure and psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the Mini-Mental Adjustment to Cancer Scale (Mini-MAC) in a large sample of patients with non-metastatic, resected cancer.MethodsProspective, observational, multicenter study for which 914 patients were recruited from 15 Spanish hospitals. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, validity and reliability analyses were conducted.ResultsFactor-analytic results indicated a 4-factor structure of the Spanish version of the Mini-MAC. Three subscales have psychometric properties similar to those of Helplessness, Anxious preoccupation, and Cognitive avoidance of the original the Mini-MAC. The Fighting spirit and the Fatalism subscales were combined on the Positive attitude scale. The four factor-derived scale scores exhibited acceptable accuracy for individual measurement purposes, as well as stability over time in test-retest assessments at 6 months. Validity assessments found meaningful relations between the derived scale scores, and Brief Symptom Inventory depression and anxiety scores and Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy spiritual well-being scores.ConclusionsThe Spanish version of the Mini-MAC provides reliable and valid measures for patients with non-metastatic, resected cancer, and results corroborate the instrument’s cross-cultural validity.     

Early evidence of the Italian validation of Separation Anxiety Assessment Scale for Children

The current study examined the validity of the Separation Anxiety Assessment Scale for Children (SAAS-C) in a sample of 1397 Italian children (aged 8–11 years). Scalar invariance across gender was established. Results reported higher levels of separation anxiety in girls and younger children. Moreover, the measure demonstrated good convergent validity with the Spence Children Anxiety Scale. Overall, findings support the validity of the SAAS-C as a brief diagnostic tool to assess separation anxiety disorder in Italian children in line with DSM-5 criteria.     

Validation study of a Portuguese version of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale

The study aims to develop and assess metric proprieties of the Portuguese version of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. A sequential sample includes 1322 participants diagnosed with cancer, stroke, epilepsy, coronary heart disease, diabetes, myotonic dystrophy, obstructive sleep apnoea, depression and a non-disease group, which completed the HADS. The first step includes translation, retroversion, inspection for lexical equivalence and content validity, and cognitive debriefing. Then we reproduce oblique exploratory factor analysis and use confirmatory factor analysis. We explore the sensibility of the questionnaire. The validation process of the Portuguese HADS version shows metric properties similar to those in international studies, suggesting that it measures the same constructs, in the same way, as the original HADS form.     

Adaptation of the MSCI for the measurement of cohesion in Spanish young soccer players

This work describes the Spanish adaptation and studies the psychometric properties of Yukelson, Weinberg, and Jackson's Multidimensional Sport Cohesion Instrument (MSCI) with a sample of 173 soccer players. The Spanish version is composed of 22 items grouped in four factors: quality of teamwork (performance aspects), attraction to the group, valued roles and quality of teamwork (interpersonal relationships), that accounted for 53.30% of the total variance. Reliability coefficients (Cronbach's Alphas) for the factors ranged from .84 (factor 1) to .56 (factor 4). Suggestions are made for future research on the validity of the scale, mainly in terms of convergence with other multidimensional measures of sport cohesion.     

Development of a Spanish version of the Participation Motivation Inventory for young competitive swimmers

The present study examined the validity of a Spanish version of the Participation Motivation Inventory, modified for swimming by Gould, Feltz, and Weiss in 1985, and investigated whether young swimmers differing in sex and age vary in their objectives for participation. Swimmers (204 boys and 224 girls, ranging in age from 8 to 22 years) were administered the inventory. Factor analysis with varimax rotation identified seven factors fairly consistent with previous research. Differences were found across age and sex. Females placed greater emphasis than males on Friendship and Fun and indicated lower importance rating to Status. Younger children (8-10 years) rated Fun/Friendship, Competition/Skills, Significant Others, and Status significantly higher in importance than did the other age groups.     

Psychometric Properties and Clinical Cut-Off Scores of the Spanish Version of the Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents

Psychotic (P) and Non-Psychotic (N-P) retardates were compared on 13 Rorschach “indicators” of psychosis using a matched pairs technique. Two of the 13 signs were found to significantly differentiate between groups with the P group demonstrating a lower F% and higher C' responding than the N-P group.