Exploring scale validity and measurement invariance of the Toronto Mindfulness Scale across levels of meditation experience and proficiency

2018 ◽  
Vol 75 (3) ◽  
pp. 445-461 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael J. Ireland ◽  
Jamin J. Day ◽  
Bonnie A. Clough
2009 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 185-197 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen M. Davis ◽  
Mark A. Lau ◽  
David R. Cairns

After developing a trait version of the Toronto Mindfulness Scale (TMS), we evaluated its reliability, its convergent validity with six other trait mindfulness measures, and its construct validity in relation to prior meditation experience. A sample of nonmeditators (N = 218) and meditators (N = 243) with a wide range of meditation experience completed the Trait TMS and the six other mindfulness measures. Internal consistency reliability of the Trait TMS was comparable to that of the original State TMS. Significant positive correlations were found between both TMS factors and the other mindfulness measures; however, in general, the correlations for TMS Decenter were higher than for TMS Curiosity. Scores for TMS Decenter were shown to increase with meditation experience, but this was not the case for TMS Curiosity. The TMS Curiosity factor may assess a unique aspect of the mindfulness construct. Implications of these findings in relation to future mindfulness research are discussed.


2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Franki Y. H. Kung ◽  
Navio Kwok ◽  
Douglas Brown

Attention checks have become increasingly popular in survey research as a means to filter out careless respondents. Despite their widespread use, little research has empirically tested the impact of attention checks on scale validity. In fact, because attention checks can induce a more deliberative mindset in survey respondents, they may change the way respondents answer survey questions, posing a threat to scale validity. In two studies, we tested this hypothesis (N = 816). We examined whether common attention checks—instructed-response items (Study 1) and an instructional manipulation check (Study 2)—impact responses to a well-validated management scale. Results showed no evidence that they affect scale validity, both in reported scale means and tests of measurement invariance. These findings allow researchers to justify the use of attention checks without compromising scale validity and encourage future research to examine other survey characteristic-respondent dynamics to advance our use of survey methods.


2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 197-204 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristin Naragon-Gainey ◽  
Tierney P. McMahon ◽  
Megan Strowger ◽  
Ryan. J. Lackner ◽  
T. H. Stanley Seah ◽  
...  

2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (5) ◽  
pp. 777-786 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia Waldeyer ◽  
Jens Fleischer ◽  
Joachim Wirth ◽  
Detlev Leutner

Abstract. There is substantial evidence that students in higher education who have sophisticated resource-management skills are more successful in their studies. Nevertheless, research shows that students are often not adequately prepared to use resource-management strategies effectively. It is thus crucial to screen and identify students who are at risk of poor resource management (and consequently, reduced academic achievement) to provide them with appropriate support. For this purpose, we extend the validation of a situational-judgment-based instrument called Resource-Management Inventory (ReMI), which assesses resource-management competency (including knowledge of resource-management strategies and the self-reported ability to use this knowledge in learning situations). We evaluated the ReMI regarding factor structure, measurement invariance, and its impact on academic achievement in different study domains in a sample of German first-year students ( N = 380). The results confirm the five-factor structure that has been found in a previous study and indicate strong measurement invariance. Furthermore, taking cognitive covariates into account, the results confirm that the ReMI can predict students’ grades incrementally. Finally, a multi-group analysis shows that the findings can be generalized across different study domains. Overall, we provide evidence for a valid and efficient instrument for the assessment of resource-management competency in higher education.


2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (6) ◽  
pp. 771-778 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bernhard Piskernik ◽  
Barbara Supper ◽  
Lieselotte Ahnert

Abstract. While parenting research continues to compare similarities and differences in mothers’ and fathers’ behaviors based on mean values on the respective dimensions, measurement invariance as a prerequisite for these comparisons has seldom been assured. The present study thus subjected the well-known Parenting Stress Index (PSI), widely used in models of family functioning, to a rigorous measurement invariance analysis based on ( N = 214) Austrian couples with children younger than 3 years of age. We evaluated configural, metric, scalar, and uniqueness invariance on item and subscale levels, and tested for structural invariance of means and variances of the PSI parent and child domain by second-order confirmatory factor analyses. As a result, only measurement differences on the scalar levels affected the factor scores, though negligibly. On the structural levels, no differences were found on the PSI child domain across parents, but on the PSI parent domain, mothers reported more stress.


2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 87-100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gino Casale ◽  
Robert J. Volpe ◽  
Brian Daniels ◽  
Thomas Hennemann ◽  
Amy M. Briesch ◽  
...  

Abstract. The current study examines the item and scalar equivalence of an abbreviated school-based universal screener that was cross-culturally translated and adapted from English into German. The instrument was designed to assess student behavior problems that impact classroom learning. Participants were 1,346 K-6 grade students from the US (n = 390, Mage = 9.23, 38.5% female) and Germany (n = 956, Mage = 8.04, 40.1% female). Measurement invariance was tested by multigroup confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) across students from the US and Germany. Results support full scalar invariance between students from the US and Germany (df = 266, χ2 = 790.141, Δχ2 = 6.9, p < .001, CFI = 0.976, ΔCFI = 0.000, RMSEA = 0.052, ΔRMSEA = −0.003) indicating that the factor structure, the factor loadings, and the item thresholds are comparable across samples. This finding implies that a full cross-cultural comparison including latent factor means and structural coefficients between the US and the German version of the abbreviated screener is possible. Therefore, the tool can be used in German schools as well as for cross-cultural research purposes between the US and Germany.


2009 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jörg-Tobias Kuhn ◽  
Heinz Holling

The present study explores the factorial structure and the degree of measurement invariance of 12 divergent thinking tests. In a large sample of German students (N = 1328), a three-factor model representing verbal, figural, and numerical divergent thinking was supported. Multigroup confirmatory factor analyses revealed that partial strong measurement invariance was tenable across gender and age groups as well as school forms. Latent mean comparisons resulted in significantly higher divergent thinking skills for females and students in schools with higher mean IQ. Older students exhibited higher latent means on the verbal and figural factor, but not on the numerical factor. These results suggest that a domain-specific model of divergent thinking may be assumed, although further research is needed to elucidate the sources that negatively affect measurement invariance.


2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (5) ◽  
pp. 352-360 ◽  
Author(s):  
Silvia Bonino ◽  
Federica Graziano ◽  
Martina Borghi ◽  
Davide Marengo ◽  
Giorgia Molinengo ◽  
...  

Abstract. This research developed a new scale to evaluate Self-Efficacy in Multiple Sclerosis (SEMS). The aim of this study was to investigate dimensionality, item functioning, measurement invariance, and concurrent validity of the SEMS scale. Data were collected from 203 multiple sclerosis (MS) patients (mean age, 39.5 years; 66% women; 95% having a relapsing remitting form of MS). Fifteen items of the SEMS scale were submitted to patients along with measures of psychological well-being, sense of coherence, depression, and coping strategies. Data underwent Rasch analysis and correlation analysis. Rasch analysis indicates the SEMS as a multidimensional construct characterized by two correlated dimensions: goal setting and symptom management, with satisfactory reliability coefficients. Overall, the 15 items reported acceptable fit statistics; the scale demonstrated measurement invariance (with respect to gender and disease duration) and good concurrent validity (positive correlations with psychological well-being, sense of coherence, and coping strategies and negative correlations with depression). Preliminary evidence suggests that SEMS is a psychometrically sound measure to evaluate perceived self-efficacy of MS patients with moderate disability, and it would be a valuable instrument for both research and clinical applications.


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