Psychometric properties of the Brazilian version of the Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire.

INTRODUCTION: The Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (CERQ) was developed to measure nine cognitive strategies referring to what someone thinks after the experience of threatening or stressful events. The main purpose of this study was to evaluate the validity of the Brazilian version of the CERQ. METHODS: The adaptation process included translation, backtranslation, expert committee evaluation, and test on 30 participants from the target population. A sample of 445 university students completed the Portuguese version of the CERQ, a sociodemographic questionnaire, the Life Events Checklist (LEC-5), and the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) on an on-line research platform. Validity was assessed through confirmatory factor analysis of two models - a nine-factor model and a second-order model. Internal consistency was assessed through Cronbach's alpha analysis and correlations with affective variables measured by the PANAS. RESULTS: The analyses showed that the nine-factor model of the CERQ has good factorial validity and high reliability, with Cronbach's alpha values ranging between 0.71 and 0.88. The second-order model did not have a good fit to the data. CONCLUSION: The results obtained in this study are similar to the ones found previously, indicating that the Brazilian version of the CERQ is a valid and reliable tool for assessing cognitive emotion regulation strategies, but that grouping them according to their adaptability is not recommended.

Psychometric properties of the Brazilian version of the Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire / Propriedades psicométricas da versão brasileira do Questionário de Regulação Emocional Cognitiva

Abstract Introduction: The Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (CERQ) was developed to measure nine cognitive strategies referring to what someone thinks after the experience of threatening or stressful events. The main purpose of this study was to evaluate the validity of the Brazilian version of the CERQ. Methods: The adaptation process included translation, backtranslation, expert committee evaluation, and test on 30 participants from the target population. A sample of 445 university students completed the Portuguese version of the CERQ, a sociodemographic questionnaire, the Life Events Checklist (LEC-5), and the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) on an on-line research platform. Validity was assessed through confirmatory factor analysis of two models - a nine-factor model and a second-order model. Internal consistency was assessed through Cronbach's alpha analysis and correlations with affective variables measured by the PANAS. Results: The analyses showed that the nine-factor model of the CERQ has good factorial validity and high reliability, with Cronbach's alpha values ranging between 0.71 and 0.88. The second-order model did not have a good fit to the data. Conclusion: The results obtained in this study are similar to the ones found previously, indicating that the Brazilian version of the CERQ is a valid and reliable tool for assessing cognitive emotion regulation strategies, but that grouping them according to their adaptability is not recommended.

Resumo Introdução: O Questionário de Regulação Emocional Cognitiva (Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire [CERQ]) foi desenvolvido para medir nove estratégias cognitivas que se referem à forma como as pessoas pensam sobre a experiência de eventos ameaçadores ou estressantes. O objetivo principal deste estudo foi desenvolver e avaliar a validade da versão brasileira do CERQ. Métodos: O processo de adaptação incluiu tradução, retrotradução, avaliação de comitê de especialistas e teste em 30 participantes da população-alvo. Uma amostra de 445 universitários completou a versão em português do CERQ, um questionário sociodemográfico, a Lista de Verificação de Eventos de Vida (Life Events Checklist [LEC-5]) e a Escala de Afeto Positivo e Negativo (Positive and Negative Affect Schedule [PANAS]) em uma plataforma de pesquisa online. A validade do instrumento foi avaliada através da análise fatorial confirmatória de dois modelos: um modelo de nove fatores e um modelo de segunda ordem. A consistência interna foi avaliada por meio da análise de alfa de Cronbach e correlações com variáveis afetivas medidas pela PANAS. Resultados: As análises mostraram que o modelo de nove fatores do CERQ possui boa validade fatorial e alta confiabilidade, com valores de alfa de Cronbach variando entre 0,71 e 0,88. O modelo de segunda ordem não se ajustou bem aos dados. Conclusão: Os resultados obtidos neste estudo são semelhantes aos encontrados em estudos anteriores, indicando que o CERQ é uma ferramenta válida e confiável para avaliar as estratégias de regulação cognitiva das emoções, mas que agrupá-las de acordo com sua adaptabilidade não é recomendado.