Measurement Instruments for the Social Sciences

Psychometric Evaluation of Schwarzer & Jerusalem's General Self-Efficacy Scale Among Indian Adolescents: A Factor Analysis and Multidimensional Item Response Theory Approach

Sumit Kumar Das — 2024-11-14

Introduction: The General Self-Efficacy (GSE) scale developed by Schwarzer and Jerusalem has been found in previous studies to be both unidimensional and multidimensional constructs. Objective: This study applied factor analysis (FA) and multidimensional item response theory (MIRT) techniques to evaluate the GSE scale’s factor structure in Indian adolescents. Method: The data for this study was taken from the latest round of the Young Lives Survey (YLS) conducted in the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana in 2016. The GSE scale’s dimensionality was confirmed with factor analysis, and item parameters were estimated using the graded response model in the MIRT approach. Sex-wise measurement of invariance was also checked using the factor analysis approach. Results: The value of Cronbach’s alpha was 0.75, demonstrating a fairly good internal consistency. Both FA and MIRT indicated the presence of two dimensions of the GSE scale. Items 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, and 10 were associated with one-dimension named ‘general self-efficacy’, while Items 1, 3, and 6 were highly loaded with another dimension named ‘task-specific self-efficacy’. The statistics obtained from MIRT showed that this scale is useful for studies involving subjects with lower levels of self-efficacy. Slight modifications to items 2 and 3 may be made before using them in an Indian context.

Biased Bivariate Correlations in Combined Survey Data Measured With Different Instruments

Ranjit K. Singh — 2024-08-14

Social scientists increasingly form composite datasets using data from different survey programs, which often use different single-question instruments to measure the same latent construct. This creates an obstacle when we want to run analyses using the combined data, since the scores measured with different instruments are not necessarily comparable. In this paper, we explore one consequence of such comparability problems. Specifically, we examine the case where instruments measuring the same construct have different item difficulties. This means if we applied the instruments to the same population, we would get different mean responses. If such mean differences are not mitigated before combining data, we introduce a mean bias into our composite data. Such mean bias has direct consequences for analyses based on the combined data. In data drawn from the same population, mean bias introduces error variance. In data drawn from different populations it would bias or even invert true population differences. However, in this paper I demonstrate that mean bias can also bias bivariate correlations if one or both variables in a composite dataset are subject to mean bias. If differences in item difficulty are not mitigated before combining data, we introduce a variant of Simpson’s paradox into our data: The bivariate correlation in each source survey might differ substantially from the correlation in the composite dataset. In a set of systematic simulations, I demonstrate this correlation bias effect and show how it changes depending on the mean biases in each variable and the strength of the underlying true correlation.

Uncovering Regional Inequalities in Digitalization: A Multifaceted Measurement for Germany

Jonas Detemple — 2024-07-03

The ongoing global digital transformation has significant implications for economies and societies, with potential benefits and challenges. This study addresses the critical need for a comprehensive measurement of regional digitalization in Germany to better understand its impact on various aspects of life, including education, employment, and working conditions. Using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), it introduces a multifaceted regional digitalization measure at the administrative district level (NUTS-3) that incorporates digital infrastructure, culture, technology capacity, high-tech human capital, and digitalization-related innovativeness. Results for 2013 and 2017 are compared. The study reveals that digitalization varies significantly across regions, but hardly over time. Urban regions tend to have higher digitalization levels, which are positively associated with economic productivity and high-skilled labor demand. Our developed measurement of regional digitalization is publicly available.

Master Turkers: An Assessment of Data Quality

Christopher Trenge — 2024-07-03

Amazon’s Mechanical Turk has greatly increased in popularity in recent years considering recent world events as well as due to the increased acceptance of technology in the field of research. Because of this, it is essential that the research methods associated with conducting research online be evaluated. The present study evaluated if Amazon’s upper echelon of workers, Master Turkers, provide a higher quality of data relative to workers without that designation. This was evaluated using two scales that are validated and have been extensively used in research. The results showed that Master Turkers were found to have worse performance on scales (lower reliability) compared to non-Master Turkers. This data highlights an issue that potential researchers should be aware of when using the Mechanical Turk, as well as problem that should be addressed by Amazon.

Measuring Ageism: Psychometric Analysis of the Portuguese Short Form of the Fraboni Scale (FSA-SF)

Joana Neto — 2024-05-13

This article reports the development of a Portuguese shortened form of the Fraboni Scale of Ageism FSA (FSA-SF). The original FSA with 29 items measures the affective aspect of attitudes toward elderly to complement the cognitive component evaluated by other tools. Two studies were implemented to determine the psychometric features of the FSA-SF with 9 items. In the first study, 404 participants answered a questionnaire in Portuguese to evaluate the dimensionality of the FSA-SF via confirmatory factor analysis. In addition, the second-order factor, the reliability, and the convergent validity of the FSA-SF was assessed. Results showed 3 factors (Avoidance, Stereotypes, and Discrimination) with a second order factor (Ageism). The reliability and convergent validity of the FSA-SF were adequate. In the second study, 246 participants also answered a questionnaire in Portuguese to evaluate the replicability of the 3-factor structure and the second-order factor. In addition, the reliability, convergent, and incremental validity of the FSA-SF were examined. Good construct validity for the first and second order models was replicated via confirmatory factor analyses. Findings showed that the Portuguese FSA-SF had satisfactory reliability, convergent, and incremental validity. Overall, this article determines that the Portuguese shortened FSA-SF is an adequate tool to assess ageism.

German Translation of the Four-Item Mentalising Index (FIMI-G)

Alex Bertrams — 2024-02-08

Mentalising can be defined as the social-cognitive ability to understand and infer the mental non-emotional states of oneself and others. Recently, the Four-Item Mentalising Index (FIMI), a self-report scale, was developed to efficiently measure mentalising ability in English-speaking samples. This study presents a German translation of the FIMI—namely, the Four-Item Mentalising Index-German (FIMI-G). To assess the usefulness of the translation, initial evidence for the psychometric properties of the FIMI-G was gathered in a German-speaking sample from Austria, Germany, and Switzerland (N = 283). As expected, the corrected item-total correlations, the confirmatory factor analysis, and the inner consistency estimation indicated a homogenous, unidimensional measure which corresponds to the English original. In addition, the FIMI-G scores were related to the validation criteria as expected. Socially desirable responding did not undermine the validity. It is concluded that the German FIMI translation is a useful measure.

Measuring Organizational Transparency With 10 Items: Validation of a German Short Scale

C. Richard Hossiep — 2024-02-08

In recent research on transparency in organizational settings, a multidimensional understanding of supervisor transparency has gained acceptance. Following recent operationalizations, the construct can be measured by the five dimensions of Disclosure, Clarity, Accuracy, Timeliness, and Relevance of shared information. Initial applications of the scale already show its usefulness in that theoretically well-founded relationships, e.g., to trust, could be empirically supported using the instrument. As the instrument consists of twenty items, it can be too long for specific application fields. A shorter, more economical instrument is of value, especially in surveys that include many different constructs. In this article, we report on our testing of the suitability of a German shorter version consisting of only ten items. The results show that this instrument respects the dimensionality of the construct and leads to similar effects concerning its relationship to trust (-worthiness) and job satisfaction compared to the long scale. The findings also support the notion that individual transparency dimensions have different and distinct effects. Thus, the importance of a multidimensional understanding of transparency in organizational settings is also underlined by the short scale.

Toward French and Italian Language Validations of the Conspiracy Mentality Scale (CMS)

Ana Stojanov — 2023-10-31

The growing scientific interest in conspiracy beliefs calls for validated measures of conspiracy mentality, the tendency to believe any conspiracy theory. In this study, we validate a French and Italian version of the Conspiracy Mentality Scale (CMS). French (N = 160) and Italian (N = 114) speaking residents of Switzerland filled out a questionnaire, including measures of the need for social validation, compliance with COVID-19 preventive measures, perceived severity of the pandemic, and functional literacy. The two-dimensionality of the scale (conspiracy theory ideation and skepticism) was validated by confirmatory factor analysis. As predicted, conspiracy theory ideation was negatively related to functional literacy and compliance with pandemic control measures, and positively related to social validation. Measurement invariance indicated metric, scalar, residual and strucutral equivalence across the two samples. We conclude that the French and Italian versions of the CMS lend a valid assessment of people’s general tendency to believe conspiracy theories.

The Development and Psychometric Evaluation of Two New Scales of Self-Compassion for Preadolescents

Victoria S. Barclay-Timmis — 2023-08-11

There are currently no parent-reported scales adapted or validated to measure self-compassion in preadolescent children despite growing interest in the application of this construct in both illness and wellness fields. Two-new measures of self-compassion—modelled from Neff’s Self-Compassion Scale—were designed and pilot tested to provide preliminary evidence of validity with preadolescents aged between 9 and 12 years (n = 193) and their parents (n = 108). Participants completed the Self-Compassion Scale-Preadolescent (SCS-P) or the Self-Compassion Scale-Preadolescent-Parent Report (SCS-P-PR), along with measures of resilience and psychosocial wellbeing. Factor analyses indicted that both the SCS-P and SCS-P-PR measured two statistically and theoretically distinct constructs: compassionate self-responding and uncompassionate self-responding. Both types of self-responding were related to most of the measures of psychosocial wellbeing and resilience in the expected directions. Importantly, the SCS-P-PR is the first parent-reported measure of self-compassion to be introduced in the literature; moderate correlations with the SCS-P suggest that self-compassionate attitudes and behaviours in children are visible to their parents. Should further validation research replicate these promising preliminary findings, the SCS-P and the SCS-P-PR have potential to make valuable contributions to the assessments available to researchers investigating self-compassion in preadolescent children. This research adds to the growing body of literature that cautions against the common practice of viewing self-compassion as one overarching construct. It is recommended that future research take a qualitative approach to enable deeper exploration of both the positive and negative elements of self-compassionate responding in cohorts of children.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Factor Structure, Criterion-Related Validity, and Longitudinal Measurement Invariance of the Regulation of Eating Behavior Scale (REBS): A Bifactor S-1 Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling Approach</h1> <p>Andreas Stenling — 2023-07-06</p> <p><title/>The Regulation of Eating Behavior Scale (REBS) is one of the most popular measures to assess why people regulate their eating behaviors. However, few studies have examined its psychometric properties and problems with discriminant validity have been identified in previous research. The present study (re)examined the factor structure and criterion-related validity of the REBS using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), exploratory structural equation modeling (ESEM), and bifactor (S-1) modeling in a sample of middle-aged women (N = 1447). We also examined longitudinal measurement invariance in a subsample of participants (n = 803) who responded to the survey 5 years later. The bifactor S-1 ESEM provided an excellent fit to the data and the factor loading pattern showed a well-defined global self-determination factor anchored in intrinsic motivation with decreasing contribution from the other items on the continuum. Relations between the global and specific motivation factors, food habits, binge eating, and BMI provided evidence of criterion-related validity. Longitudinal measurement invariance across time was also verified. Our results support the idea that the global factor represent a general quantity of self-determination rather than relative self-determination.</p> </article> </main></body></html>