Psychometric properties of the Shared Decision-Making Questionnaire (SDM-Q-9) in oncology practicePropiedades psicométricas del Questionnaire Shared Decision-Making (SDM-Q-9) en oncología

Background/Objective: This study sought to assess the psychometric properties of the 9-item Shared Decision-Making Questionnaire (SDM-Q-9) in patients with resected, non-metastatic cancer and eligible for adjuvant chemotherapy. Method: A total of 568 patients were recruited from a multi-institutional, prospective, transversal study. Patients answered the SDM-Q-9 after visiting their medical oncologist who, in turn, completed the SDM-Q–Physician version. Reliability, factorial structures [exploratory factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA)], and convergent validity of the SDM-Q-9 scores were explored. Results: SDM-Q-9 showed a clear factorial structure, compatible with a strong and replicable general factor and a secondary group factor, in patients with resected, non-metastatic cancer. Total sum scores derived from the general factor showed good reliability in terms of omega coefficient: .90. The association between patient and physician perception of SDM was weak and failed to reach statistical significance. Males and patients over 60 years of age displayed the greatest satisfaction with SDM. Conclusions: SDM-Q-9 can aid in evaluating SDM from the cancer patients’ perspective. SDM-Q-9 is helpful in studies examining patient perspectives of SDM and as an indicator of the degree of quality and satisfaction with health care and patient-physician relationship.     

Short Form of the Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents among community and institutionalized Portuguese youths

Background/Objective: Social anxiety is a common issue arising in adolescence that can cause significant impairment and have detrimental consequences for development in the absence of treatment. In this study we examined the factor structure and the psychometric properties of a 12-item short form of the Portuguese-Language Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents (SAS-A-SF). Method: A community adolescent sample (N = 835) and a young offender sample (N = 244) completed the SAS-A, the Basic Empathy Scale and the Reactive-Proactive Aggression Questionnaire. Confirmatory factor analysis, internal consistency, cross gender and cross sample invariance, convergent and discriminant validity of the SAS-A-SF were analyzed. Results: The confirmatory factor analysis revealed that the 3-factor second-order model obtained the best fit.The results provided evidence that the SAS-A-SF is a psychometrically sound instrument that shows measurement invariance across genders and across samples, good reliability and positive correlations with empathy. Conclusions: The Portuguese version of SAS-A-SF is a useful, time-efficient tool for both researchers and practitioners who need to assess social anxiety, a relevant construct in adolescent psychopathology.     

Differential short-term memorisation for vocal and instrumental rhythms

This study explores differential processing of vocal and instrumental rhythms in short-term memory with three decision (same/different judgments) and one reproduction experiment. In the first experiment, memory performance declined for delayed versus immediate recall, with accuracy for the two rhythms being affected differently: Musicians performed better than non-musicians on clapstick but not on vocal rhythms, and musicians were better on vocal rhythms in the same than in the different condition. Results for the second experiment showed that concurrent sub-vocal articulation and finger-tapping differentially affected the two rhythms and same/different decisions, but produced no evidence for articulatory loop involvement in delayed decision tasks. In a third experiment, which tested rhythm reproduction, concurrent sub-vocal articulation decreased memory performance, with a stronger deleterious effect on the reproduction of vocal than of clapstick rhythms. This suggests that the articulatory loop may only be involved in delayed reproduction not in decision tasks. The fourth experiment tested whether differences between filled and empty rhythms (continuous vs. discontinuous sounds) can explain the different memorisation of vocal and clapstick rhythms. Though significant differences were found for empty and filled instrumental rhythms, the differences between vocal and clapstick can only be explained by considering additional voice specific features.     

脑功能成像在催眠状态中的研究进展

催眠是一种特殊的意识状态。本文从意识状态、疼痛及精神病理现象三个方面对脑功能成像在催眠状态中的研究进展进行了回顾,并对脑功能成像技术进行了比较。提出国内可以借鉴相应的方法来研究中国气功。     

Means-end coherence,stringency, and subjective reasons

Intentions matter. They have some kind of normative impact on our agency. Something goes wrong when an agent intends some end and fails to carry out the means she believes to be necessary for it, and something goes right when, intending the end, she adopts the means she thinks are required. This has even been claimed to be one of the only uncontroversial truths in ethical theory. But not only is there widespread disagreement about why this is so, there is widespread disagreement about in what sense it is so. In this paper I explore an underdeveloped answer to the question of in what sense it is so, and argue that resolving an apparent difficulty with this view leads to an attractive picture about why it is so.

Travel behavior as a driver of attitude: Car use and car pride in U.S. cities

Individuals attribute social status and personal image to owning and using a car (‘car pride’), which may interact with their travel behavior in complex ways. This study explores the multi-directional relations among car pride, car ownership, and car use for a sample of 1236 adult commuters in New York City, NY and Houston, TX. Applying multivariate structural equation modeling and incorporating instrumental variables, we find evidence of a feedback loop among car pride, car ownership, and car use. Our results suggest that an individual with higher car pride is more likely to own a vehicle, and, enabled with this ownership, use it more frequently. And individuals who use their car more frequently are likely to feel more pride in owning and using their vehicle.This exploration of causal multi-directionality in transportation attitude-behavior relations has important implications for behavioral research, model development, and policy interventions. For researchers, potential bidirectionality must be anticipated from the outset of research design and accounted for appropriately in modeling to address underlying endogeneity. For policymakers, our results suggest that there are multiple intervention points within the reinforcing cycle of attitudes and car consumption. Policies could directly target car ownership and use or could consider influencing behavior through attitude change.     

Spanish adaptation of the Personal Meaning Profile-Brief: Meaning in life,psychological well-being,and distress

Background/ObjectiveThis study aimed to adapt the Personal Meaning Profile-Brief (PMP-B) to the Spanish-speaking population and investigate its psychometric properties. The PMP-B is a 21-item instrument that assesses meaning in life through seven sources: relationship, intimacy, achievement, self-acceptance, self-transcendence, fair treatment, and religion.MethodParticipants were 546 Spanish adults comprised of a community sample (n = 171) and university students (n = 375). The PMP-B, the Ryff's Scales of Psychological Well-Being, and the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale were administrated.ResultsThe PMP-B showed a bifactor structure with one general factor and seven subfactors. Measurement invariance was found across age, gender, and samples. Internal consistency and test-retest reliability were generally good. Older people showed higher PMP-B scores than younger people. The PMP-B scores, especially relational sources of meaning, were positively associated with psychological well-being and negatively related to psychological distress, mainly to depression.ConclusionsThe validity evidence gathered in this study supports the reliable use of the PMP-B to measure meaning in life. The PMP-B can be a noteworthy contribution to the meaning-centered research.     

Spanish validation of the Parental Acceptance Questionnaire (6-PAQ)

Background/ObjectivePsychological flexibility is an ability with positive effects in health, also in the field parenting. The aim of this study is to validate the Parental Acceptance Questionnaire (6-PAQ) in Spanish sample.MethodA total of 426 parents (96.3% female), with an average age of 38.25 years (SD = 5.76) and with at least one child between 3 and 16 years old participated. Participants completed the 6PAQ and other instruments assessing experiential avoidance, thought suppression, satisfaction with life and symptoms of anxiety and depression.ResultsIn comparison with the original model, the three-factor structural solution with 16 items obtained a better adjustment (CFI = .996; GFI = .998; TLI = .995; RMSE = .016) that refer to response styles related to psychological flexibility (open, aware and active). The 6-PAQ adaptation has shown good internal consistency, with a Cronbach alpha of .81 and a McDonald's omega of .86 for the scale, and evidence of convergent validity with significant correlations with measure of avoidance, thought suppression, satisfaction with life and anxiety.ConclusionsThe Spanish version of the 6-PAQ with the three-factor structure presents psychometric property to be considered a reliable measure and a valid instrument for the evaluation of parental psychological flexibility.     

Assessment of shared decision-making in community mental health care: Validation of the CollaboRATE

Background/ObjectiveCollaboRATE is a 3-item self-report measure of the patient experience of shared decision-making (SDM) process. The objective of this study is to assess the psychometric properties of CollaboRATE in community mental health care.MethodA cross-sectional study was conducted at a Community Mental Health Center of the Canary Islands Health Service. Two hundred and fifty consecutive psychiatric outpatients were invited to participate. Of those, 191 accepted (76.40% of response rate) and completed the CollaboRATE, the Control Preferences Scale (CPS), and a form with sociodemographic and clinical variables.ResultsExploratory factor analysis ratified the unidimensionality of the measure. High internal consistency was found (α Cronbach = .95, Guttman's λ = .93, and ω = .95). Strong positive correlations (p < .0001) were found between the CollaboRATE and the CPS. Only 39.80% of respondents gave the best possible score on CollaboRATE.ConclusionsThis study provides evidence for the reliability and validity of the Spanish version of the CollaboRATE as a measure of SDM. The measure is quick to complete and feasible for use in outpatient mental health care. At present, a significative number of psychiatric outpatients are not involved in SDM. The use of this measure in psychiatric routine care can be a key tool in assessing and implementing SDM.     

Salutogenic constructs across Pakistan and Germany: A cross sectional study

Background/ObjectiveProtective factors are relevant for mental health in general, however, universality of the instruments has been rarely tested. Therefore, the current study aimed to examine psychometric properties and cross-cultural measurement invariance of salutogenic constructs.MethodData was collected from university students of Pakistan (n = 1,841) and Germany (n = 7,890). Single-group confirmatory analysis (CFA) and multiple-group CFA was tested to examine the proposed factor structure and measurement invariance of Positive Mental Health Scale, Resilience Scale, Perceived Social Support Questionnaire, and Life Satisfaction Scale across student samples from Pakistan and Germany respectively.ResultsWe found strong measurement invariance for the Positive Mental Health Scale, Life Satisfaction Scale, and partial strong measurement for the Resilience Scale, and Perceived Social Support Questionnaire.ConclusionsThe results indicate that these scales could be recommended for the meaningful comparison of latent means across cultures. Understanding these differences would further advance our knowledge about the mechanism underlying positive mental health.