Construct Validity of the Professional Quality of Life (ProQoL) Scale in a Sample of Child Protection Workers.

The Professional Quality of Life (ProQOL) scale is one of the most widely used measures of compassion satisfaction and fatigue despite there being little publicly available evidence to support its validity. This study, conducted among a sample of 310 child protection workers, assessed the construct validity of this measure using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and bifactor modeling. The CFA failed to confirm the adequacy of the three-factor structure proposed by Stamm (2010). In response, a bifactor model postulating a factor structure with a general factor in addition to independent factors (compassion satisfaction, job burnout, and secondary traumatic stress) was proposed, highlighting the unidimensionality of the ProQOL while allowing for each subscale to be used separately. Moreover, this bifactor model of the ProQOL was moderately correlated with the Posttraumatic Disorder Checklist, r = -.427, p < .001, and strongly correlated with scales of well-being at work, r = .694, p < .001, and psychological distress at work, r = -.666, p < .001, thus supporting the ProQOL's convergent validity. No associations were found between the ProQOL and the Life Event Checklist, which supports the ProQOL's discriminant validity. Overall, the results indicated that compassion satisfaction and compassion fatigue represent higher and lower levels of the same construct rather than two different constructs. Researchers and clinicians could therefore compute a single score to rate professionals' individual levels of professional quality of life.

Spanish Abstracts by Asociación Chilena de Estrés Traumático (ACET) Validez de Constructo del instrumento de medición de Calidad de Vida Profesional (ProQoL) en una muestra de trabajadores de protección infantil ESCALA DE CALIDAD DE VIDA PROFESIONAL: VALIDEZ DE CONSTRUCTO La escala de Calidad de Vida Profesional (ProQoL en su sigla en inglés) es una de las medidas más ampliamente usadas de compasión satisfacción y fatiga por compasión, a pesar de que hay escasa evidencia disponible públicamente que soporte su validez. Este estudio, realizado en una muestra de 310 trabajadores de protección infantil, evaluó la validez de constructo de esta medición usando análisis confirmatorio de factores (CFA, por su sigla en inglés) y modelado bifactor. El CFA no confirmó la idoneidad de la estructura de tres factores propuesta por Stamm (2010). En respuesta, se propone un modelo bifactor que postula una estructura factorial con un factor general junto a factores independientes (compasión satisfacción, agotamiento laboral y estrés traumático secundario), destacando la unidimensionalidad de la ProQoL mientras permite el uso por separado de cada subescala. Más aún, este modelo bifactor de la ProQoL estuvo moderadamente correlacionado con la Lista de Chequeo de Trastorno Postraumático, r = -.427, p < .001, y fuertemente correlacionado con escalas de bienestar en el trabajo, r = .694, p <.001, y malestar psicológico en el trabajo, r = -.666, p <.001, apoyando por tanto la validez convergente de la ProQoL. No se encontraron asociaciones entre la ProQoL y la Lista de Chequeo de Eventos Vitales, lo cual apoya la validez discriminante de la ProQoL. En suma, los resultados indicaron que la compasión satisfacción y la fatiga por compasión representan niveles más altos y más bajos del mismo constructo más que dos constructos diferentes. Los investigadores y los clínicos podrían por lo tanto calcular un único puntaje para calificar los niveles individuales de calidad de vida profesional de los profesionales.

GROUP-BASED SYMPTOM TRAJECTORIES IN INDICATED PREVENTION OF ADOLESCENT DEPRESSION.

BACKGROUND: Adolescent depression prevention research has focused on mean intervention outcomes, but has not considered heterogeneity in symptom course. Here, we empirically identify subgroups with distinct trajectories of depressive symptom change among adolescents enrolled in two indicated depression prevention trials and examine how cognitive-behavioral (CB) interventions and baseline predictors relate to trajectory membership. METHODS: Six hundred thirty-one participants were assigned to one of three conditions: CB group intervention, CB bibliotherapy, and brochure control. We used group-based trajectory modeling to identify trajectories of depressive symptoms from pretest to 2-year follow-up. We examined associations between class membership and conditions using chi-square tests and baseline predictors using multinomial regressions. RESULTS: We identified four trajectories in the full sample. Qualitatively similar trajectories were found in each condition separately. Two trajectories of positive symptom course (low-declining, high-declining) had declining symptoms and were distinguished by baseline symptom severity. Two trajectories of negative course (high-persistent, resurging), respectively, showed no decline in symptoms or decline followed by symptom reappearance. Participants in the brochure control condition were significantly more likely to populate the high-persistent trajectory relative to either CB condition and were significantly less likely to populate the low-declining trajectory relative to CB group. Several baseline factors predicted trajectory classes, but gender was the most informative prognostic factor, with males having increased odds of membership in a high-persistent trajectory relative to other trajectories. CONCLUSIONS: Findings suggest that CB preventive interventions do not alter the nature of trajectories, but reduce the risk that adolescents follow a trajectory of chronically elevated symptoms.

Changes in Autistic Symptoms and Adaptive Functioning of Children Receiving Early Behavioral Intervention in a Community Setting: A Latent Growth Curve Analysis.

Despite showing effects in well-controlled studies, the extent to which early intensive behavioral intervention (EBI) produces positive changes in community-based settings remains uncertain. Thus, our study examined changes in autistic symptoms and adaptive functioning in 233 children with autism receiving EBI in a community setting. The results revealed nonlinear changes in adaptive functioning characterized by significant improvements during the intervention and a small linear decrease in autistic symptoms from baseline to follow-up. The intensity of intervention, initial age, IQ and autistic symptoms were associated either with progress during the intervention or maintenance during the follow-up. The next step to extend this line of research involves collecting detailed data about intervention strategies and implementation fidelity to produce concrete recommendations for practitioners.

Can fantasizing while listening to music play a protective role against the influences of sensation seeking and peers on adolescents' substance use?

"The combination of music and drugs proved to be potent, and scientific research has yet to explain it" (Levitin, 2008, p. 74; The World in Six Songs). This study examined if fantasizing while listening to music could represent a potential protective factor against adolescent substance use (cigarette, alcohol, and cannabis). The first hypothesis was that fantasizing while listening to music would moderate (buffer) the link between sensation-seeking and substance use. The second hypothesis was that fantasizing while listening to music would also moderate (buffer) the link between peer substance use and individual substance use. The sample comprised 429 adolescent boys and girls who answered a self-report questionnaire in 2003. They were regular students attending a public high school in Montreal, Canada. The results revealed that fantasizing while listening to music came short of buffering the link between sensation-seeking and substance use among highly musically involved adolescents. Still, fantasizing while listening to music significantly attenuated the relationship between peer substance use and individual substance use (thereby, showing a protective effect) among highly musically involved adolescents. Fantasizing while listening to music did not buffer the relation between either risk factor (sensation-seeking or peer substance use) and substance use among moderately musically involved adolescents.

Zuckerman's revised alternative five-factor model: validation of the Zuckerman-Kuhlman-Aluja Personality Questionnaire in four French-speaking countries.

The aim of this study was to analyze the replicability of Zuckerman's revised Alternative Five-factor model in a French-speaking context by validating the Zuckerman-Kuhlman-Aluja Personality Questionnaire (ZKA-PQ) simultaneously in 4 French-speaking countries. The total sample was made up of 1,497 subjects from Belgium, Canada, France, and Switzerland. The internal consistencies for all countries were generally similar to those found for the normative U.S. and Spanish samples. A factor analysis confirmed that the normative structure replicated well and was stable within this French-speaking context. Moreover, multigroup confirmatory factor analyses have shown that the ZKA-PQ reaches scalar invariance across these 4 countries. Mean scores were slightly different for women and men, with women scoring higher on Neuroticism but lower on Sensation Seeking. Globally, mean score differences across countries were small. Overall, the ZKA-PQ seems an interesting alternative to assess both lower and higher order personality traits for applied or research purposes.

Assessment of "los pequeños" Big Five: The Spanish version of the Big Five Personality Trait Short Questionnaire in adolescents.

The major advantage of the Big Five Personality Trait Short Questionnaire (BFPTSQ) over other noncommercial Five-Factor Model (FFM) personality scales is that it targets both adolescents and adults. The aim of the present study was to explore the psychometric properties of this questionnaire in a Spanish, adolescent sample. The main sample was composed of 1,082 participants (Mage = 14.16, SD = 1.56, age range = 12-17 years), 53% girls. The results showed that the expected factor structure was mostly recovered using exploratory structural equation modeling (ESEM). The ESEM presented satisfactory fit indices, as well as metric invariance and partial scalar invariance across genders. Moreover, coefficient αs and ordinal Ωs of all the scales were over .70, and test-retest indices were significant (p < .001). Regarding the associations of BFPTSQ with a junior FFM inventory, the correlations with the broad-trait scales ranged from .61 to .72, and 29 out of 30 correlations with the facet scales were significant (p < .001). Finally, most of the expected associations between the BFPTSQ scales and the criterion measures (internalizing and externalizing symptom scales, life satisfaction, and academic performance) were confirmed, widely replicating the results found in the development of the original questionnaire. This study supports the construct validity of extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and emotional stability scales in Spanish-speaking adolescents. However, openness did not emerge as a well-defined factor in the present sample. The questionnaire seems to be a useful and readable measure for research and, potentially, for other applications such as clinical use. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Cross-cultural examination of the Big Five Personality Trait Short Questionnaire: Measurement invariance testing and associations with mental health.

The present study examined the measurement invariance of the Big Five Personality Trait Short Questionnaire (BFPTSQ) across language (Spanish and English), Spanish-speaking country of origin (Argentina and Spain) and gender groups (female and male). Evidence of criterion-related validity was examined via associations (i.e., correlations) between the BFPTSQ domains and a wide variety of mental health outcomes. College students (n = 2158) from the USA (n = 1117 [63.21% female]), Argentina (n = 353 [65.72% female]) and Spain (n = 688 [66.86% female]) completed an online survey. Of the tested models, an Exploratory Structural Equation Model (ESEM) fit the data best. Multigroup ESEM and ESEM-within-CFA generally supported the measurement invariance of the questionnaire across groups. Internalizing symptomatology, rumination and low happiness were related mainly to low emotional stability across countries, while low agreeableness and low conscientiousness were related chiefly to externalizing symptomology (i.e., antisocial behavior and drug outcomes). Some correlational differences arose across countries and are discussed. Our findings generally support the BFPTSQ as an adequate measure to assess the Big Five personality domains in Spanish- and English-speaking young adults.

Prospective associations between sport participation and psychological adjustment in adolescents.

BACKGROUND: Engaging in sport has been suggested to be mitigate against psychological distress. Using a prospective-longitudinal design, we examine whether sport participation is associated with reduced psychological difficulties in adolescents and whether associations differ by sport and personal characteristics. METHODS: 17 550 adolescents from grade 7 to 10 (mean age=14.4 years old) self-reported on sport participation, depressive symptoms, social anxiety symptoms and loneliness in Spring 2007 and 1 year later. Analyses tested the association between sport participation and subsequent psychological difficulties using linear regression, while adjusting for pre-existing psychological and sociodemographic characteristics. Analyses also verified whether associations differed by sport frequency (weekly/more than weekly) and type (team/individual) using Wald tests of parameter constraints, as well as sex, age and pre-existing psychological difficulties using interaction terms. RESULTS: After adjusting for potential confounders, sport participation predicted lower social anxiety symptoms (beta=-0.02 (-0.04, -0.01)) and loneliness (beta=-0.04 (-0.05, -0.02)), but not depressive symptoms. Moderation analyses showed that sport participation predicted greater reductions in depressive symptoms, social anxiety symptoms and loneliness in adolescents with higher baseline scores on each outcome. Associations did not differ by sport frequency and type, sex and age. Post hoc analyses revealed bidirectional associations between sport participation and social anxiety symptoms and loneliness. CONCLUSIONS: Sport participation predicts small reductions in adolescent psychological distress. Reductions seem most important in youth experiencing greater pre-existing psychological difficulty. Our findings suggest that sport participation represents a protective factor that supports psychological resilience in at-risk youth.

Big Five Personality Trait Short Questionnaire: Preliminary Validation with Spanish Adults.

There are two major advantages of the Big Five Personality Trait Short Questionnaire (BFPTSQ) over other non-commercial short Five-Factor Model personality measures: widen conceptual breadth, and its use in both adolescents and adults. The aim of this study was to explore the psychometric properties of this questionnaire in an adult Spanish sample. Factor, convergent (using the NEO-PI-R), and criterion (using scales that assess happiness and alcohol consumption) validities, internal consistency as well as test-retest reliabilities of the BFPTSQ were evaluated. The sample was composed of 262 participants; a subsample of 71 individuals also answered the NEO-PI-R, and another subsample of 42 respondents filled the BFPTSQ out again a month later. The results indicated that the expected factor structure was recovered using exploratory structural equation modeling (ESEM). The ESEM showed satisfactory fit indices, with CFI and TLI around .90, as well as RMSEA and SRMR below .06. Moreover, coefficient alphas ranged from .75 to .85 and test-retest correlations ranged from .72 to .93 (p < .001). Regarding the associations of BFPTSQ with NEO-PI-R scales, the correlations with the broad-trait scales ranged from .57 to .80 (p < .001), and 27 out of 30 correlations with the facet scales were significant (p < .05 or lower). We also found that extraversion and emotional stability were associated with subjective well-being (p < .001), and extraversion and conscientiousness were related to alcohol consumption (p < .01). This study supports the construct validity of the Spanish version of the BFPTSQ in adults.

Adolescent Trajectories of Depressive Symptoms: Codevelopment of Behavioral and Academic Problems.

PURPOSE: Increasing evidence suggests the existence of heterogeneity in the development of depressive symptoms during adolescence, but little remains known regarding the implications of this heterogeneity for the development of commonly co-occurring problems. In this study, we derived trajectories of depressive symptoms in adolescents and examined the codevelopment of multiple behavioral and academic problems in these trajectories. METHODS: Participants were 6,910 students from secondary schools primarily located in disadvantaged areas of Quebec (Canada) who were assessed annually from the age 12 to 16 years. Trajectories were identified using growth mixture modeling. The course of behavioral (delinquency, substance use) and academic adjustment (school liking, academic achievement) in trajectories was examined by deriving latent growth curves for each covariate conditional on trajectory membership. RESULTS: We identified five trajectories of stable-low (68.1%), increasing (12.1%), decreasing (8.7%), transient (8.7%), and stable-high (2.4%) depressive symptoms. Examination of conditional latent growth curves revealed that the course of behavioral and academic problems closely mirrored the course of depressive symptoms in each trajectory. CONCLUSIONS: This pattern of results suggests that the course of depressive symptoms and other adjustment problems over time is likely to involve an important contribution of shared underlying developmental process(es).

Construct validity of adolescents' self-reported big five personality traits: importance of conceptual breadth and initial validation of a short measure.

While there are a number of short personality trait measures that have been validated for use with adults, few are specifically validated for use with adolescents. To trust such measures, it must be demonstrated that they have adequate construct validity. According to the view of construct validity as a unifying form of validity requiring the integration of different complementary sources of information, this article reports the evaluation of content, factor, convergent, and criterion validities as well as reliability of adolescents' self-reported personality traits. Moreover, this study sought to address an inherent potential limitation of short personality trait measures, namely their limited conceptual breadth. In this study, starting with items from a known measure, after the language-level was adjusted for use with adolescents, items tapping fundamental primary traits were added to determine the impact of added conceptual breadth on the psychometric properties of the scales. The resulting new measure was named the Big Five Personality Trait Short Questionnaire (BFPTSQ). A group of expert judges considered the items to have adequate content validity. Using data from a community sample of early adolescents, the results confirmed the factor validity of the Big Five structure in adolescence as well as its measurement invariance across genders. More important, the added items did improve the convergent and criterion validities of the scales, but did not negatively affect their reliability. This study supports the construct validity of adolescents' self-reported personality traits and points to the importance of conceptual breadth in short personality measures.

Adolescent illicit drug use and subsequent academic and psychosocial adjustment: an examination of socially-mediated pathways.

BACKGROUND: Questions remain regarding the consequences of illicit drug use on adolescent adjustment and the nature of mechanisms that may explain these consequences. In this study, we examined whether early-onset illicit drug use predicts subsequent academic and psychosocial adjustment and whether associations are socially-mediated by decreased school engagement and increased peer deviancy. METHOD: 4885 adolescents were followed throughout secondary school. We used regressions to determine whether illicit drug use in grade 7 predicted academic achievement, school dropout, depressive symptoms, and conduct problems in grades 10-11, adjusting for potential confounders. We used path analysis to test whether significant associations were mediated by school engagement and peer deviancy in grade 8. RESULTS: Illicit drug use predicted conduct problems and school dropout, but not academic achievement and depressive symptoms. The association between illicit drug use and conduct problems was fully mediated by increased peer deviancy. The association between illicit drug use and school dropout was partially mediated by increased peer deviancy, but remained mostly direct. No indirect association via decreased school engagement was found. Examination of reverse pathways revealed that conduct problems and academic achievement in grade 7 predicted drug use in grades 10-11. These associations were mediated by peer deviancy and school engagement (conduct problems only). CONCLUSION: Adolescent illicit drug use influences the risk of school dropout and conduct problems in part by contributing to deviant peer affiliation. Reciprocal social mediation characterizes the association between drug use and conduct problems. A reverse mechanism best explains the association with academic achievement.

Initial validation of the Brief Assessment of Service Satisfaction in Persons with an Intellectual Disability (BASSPID).

Individuals with an intellectual disability often require intensive services to promote their social participation to the fullest extent. As such, measuring satisfaction with these services appears essential to enhance the quality of life of individuals with an intellectual disability and to improve service delivery within agencies. Thus, the purpose of the study was to conduct an initial validation of the Brief Assessment of Service Satisfaction in Persons with an Intellectual Disability (BASSPID), a 15-item questionnaire designed to assess service satisfaction. To examine the structure, reliability, and validity of the BASSPID, we interviewed 98 individuals with an intellectual disability and 23 parents. Overall, the BASSPID contained one scale, which had strong content and convergent validity as well as items easily understandable for individuals with an intellectual disability. Furthermore, the questionnaire had good internal consistency and adequate test-retest reliability. However, parents generally overestimated the perceived satisfaction of their child. The study suggests that the BASSPID may be useful to assess the satisfaction of individuals with an intellectual disability, but more research is needed to examine its potential impact on improving service quality.

Adolescent behavioral, affective, and cognitive engagement in school: relationship to dropout.

BACKGROUND: High school dropout represents an important public health issue. This study assessed the 3 distinct dimensions of student engagement in high school and examined the relationships between the nature and course of such experiences and later dropout. METHODS: We administered questionnaires to 13,330 students (44.7% boys) from 69 high schools in the province of Quebec (Canada). During 3 consecutive high school years, students reported their behavioral, emotional, and cognitive engagement to school. Information on later dropout status was obtained through official records. RESULTS: Although many adolescents remained highly engaged in high school, one third reported changes, especially decreases in rule compliance, interest in school, and willingness to learn. Students reporting low engagement or important decrements in behavioral investment from the beginning of high school presented higher risks of later dropout. CONCLUSION: School-based interventions should address the multiple facets of high school experiences to help adolescents successfully complete their basic schooling. Creating a positive social-emotional learning environment promises better adolescent achievement and, in turn, will contribute to a healthier lifestyle.

The role of the bifactor model in resolving dimensionality issues in health outcomes measures.

OBJECTIVES: We propose the application of a bifactor model for exploring the dimensional structure of an item response matrix, and for handling multidimensionality. BACKGROUND: We argue that a bifactor analysis can complement traditional dimensionality investigations by: (a) providing an evaluation of the distortion that may occur when unidimensional models are fit to multidimensional data, (b) allowing researchers to examine the utility of forming subscales, and, (c) providing an alternative to non-hierarchical multidimensional models for scaling individual differences. METHOD: To demonstrate our arguments, we use responses (N = 1,000 Medicaid recipients) to 16 items in the Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS2.0) survey. ANALYSES: Exploratory and confirmatory factor analytic and item response theory models (unidimensional, multidimensional, and bifactor) were estimated. RESULTS: CAHPS items are consistent with both unidimensional and multidimensional solutions. However, the bifactor model revealed that the overwhelming majority of common variance was due to a general factor. After controlling for the general factor, subscales provided little measurement precision. CONCLUSION: The bifactor model provides a valuable tool for exploring dimensionality related questions. In the Discussion, we describe contexts where a bifactor analysis is most productively used, and we contrast bifactor with multidimensional IRT models (MIRT). We also describe implications of bifactor models for IRT applications, and raise some limitations.

Searching for a developmental typology of personality and its relations to antisocial behavior: a longitudinal study of a representative sample of men.

The search for an empirically based personality typology has regained the interest of researchers. To date, however, the empirical inquiries were mainly cross-sectional. In this study, an empirically based developmental typology of personality was identified using data from a prospective longitudinal study of a representative sample of men assessed on four occasions from adolescence to midlife. Cluster analyses were performed on measures of Disinhibition, Negative Emotionality, and Extraversion. Four developmental types of personality were identified. The first was characterized by average scores in the three traits in adolescence that decreased rapidly until midlife (38%). The second was similar, but, instead, displayed increases in Extraversion during adulthood (32%). The third type showed high scores in Disinhibition and Negative Emotionality in adolescence that decreased progressively until midlife (23%). The fourth type was characterized by average scores in the three traits during adolescence followed by important increases in Negative Emotionality and decreases in Extraversion during adulthood (7%). These four developmental types of personality seemed to be related to known antisocial behavior trajectories.

Continuity and change in personality traits from adolescence to midlife: a 25-year longitudinal study comparing representative and adjudicated men.

In the first study, a hierarchical structure of personality traits was identified using data from a longitudinal study tracing two samples of men from adolescence to midlife (i.e., a representative sample of the general population and a sample of individuals adjudicated during their adolescence). The second study examined structural, rank-order, and mean-level continuity. Partial structural continuity was demonstrated through confirmatory factor analysis. Regarding rank-order continuity, the correlations were stronger as age increased, particularly for the adjudicated men. For mean-level continuity, the adjudicated men displayed higher scores from adolescence to midlife for nearly every personality trait related to Disinhibition and Negative Emotionality. Significant decreases were observed in these traits for both samples, supporting the hypothesis of a normative psychological maturation. Although both samples showed this maturation, the adjudicated men displayed a lower rate of change during adolescence and early adulthood. The two samples did not differ in Extraversion and this trait remained more stable, particularly for adjudicated men.

Searching for a developmental typology of personality and its relations to antisocial behaviour: a longitudinal study of an adjudicated men sample.

The search for an empirically based personality typology has regained the interest of researchers. To date, however, empirical inquiries have mainly been cross-sectional. In this study, an empirically based developmental typology of personality was identified using data from a prospective longitudinal study of a sample of men adjudicated during their adolescence and assessed on four occasions until midlife. Cluster analyses were performed on measures of disinhibition, negative emotionality, and extraversion. Four developmental types of personality were identified. The first was characterized by average scores in the three traits in adolescence that decreased linearly until midlife (39%). The second type displayed very high scores in disinhibition and negative emotionality in adolescence that decreased rapidly during early adulthood (24%). The third type was characterized by very high scores in disinhibition and negative emotionality that remained stable until midlife, while extraversion was average during adolescence and then decreased rapidly until midlife (17%). The fourth type was characterized by high scores in disinhibition and negative emotionality in adolescence that was followed by cycles of decreases and increases until midlife (20%). These four developmental types of personality seemed to be related to known antisocial behaviour trajectories.