[Convergence of Scales to Measure Social Anxiety: An IRT Linking Approach]. / Konvergenz von Skalen zur Erfassung sozialer Ängste: Ein IRT-Linking Ansatz.

OBJECTIVE: The Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS) and the Social Phobia Inventory (SPIN) are established measures in the investigation of social anxiety. Furthermore, the subscale Interpersonal Sensitivity of the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI-53) is frequently used to screen social anxiety. All three scales claim to capture the same construct, which raises the question of the convergence of these scales. To make research findings comparable by a cross-questionnaire factor (common factor), an item response theory (IRT) linking approach is used in the present study. METHODS: 64 German-speaking psychiatric patients and 295 healthy subjects completed the three questionnaires. Different IRT models, including Graded Response Models (GRM), were constructed, and their model fit compared. Regression analyses were performed based on the best-fit model. The common factor was predicted from the questionnaire total values. RESULTS: The relationship between the different scales was best explained by a bifactor GRM with one common factor and three domain-specific factors (RMSEA=0.036, CFI=0.977, WRMR=1.061). Based on the results of the regression analyses, three equations were derived for the transformation of questionnaire's total values. CONCLUSION: The IRT linking approach allows the derivation of a general factor of social anxiety, taking into account commonalities and differences between the instruments used. This has advantages for both research and practice. A replication of this study as well as the implementation of further instruments are recommended to verify the validity of this approach and to generalize the results.