Confirmatory Factor Analysis of Neighbourhood Features amongst South African Low-Income Housing Occupants

Author(s):  
Clinton Aigbavboa ◽  
Wellington Thwala
2021 ◽  
pp. 001698622110245
Author(s):  
Hyeseong Lee ◽  
Marcia Gentry ◽  
Yukiko Maeda

The underrepresentation of students from low-income families and of culturally diverse students is a longstanding and pervasive problem in the field of gifted education. Teachers play an important role in equitably identifying and serving students in gifted education; therefore, the Having Opportunities Promotes Excellence (HOPE) Scale was used in this study with a sample of Korean elementary school teachers ( n = 55) and their students ( n = 1,157). Confirmatory factor analysis and multigroup confirmatory factor analysis results suggested the HOPE Scale shows equivalence of model form, factor loading, and factor variances across different income and ethnic groups. A follow-up interview with teachers ( n = 6) revealed they acknowledged the importance of using the HOPE Scale as an additional method for identifying gifted students; however, they indicated less confidence about rating gifted students’ social characteristics compared with academic components in the HOPE Scale.


Author(s):  
Cheng Li ◽  
Christy Hullings ◽  
Wei Wang ◽  
Debra M. Palmer Keenan

Background: Low-income adolescents’ physical activity (PA) levels fall below current recommendations. Perceived barriers to physical activity (PBPA) are likely significant predictors of PA levels; however, valid and reliable measures to assess PA barriers are lacking. This manuscript describes the development of the PBPA Survey for Low-Income Adolescents. Methods: A mixed-method approach was used. Items identified from the literature and revised for clarity and appropriateness (postcognitive interviews) were assessed for test–retest reliability with 74 adolescents using intraclass correlation coefficient. Items demonstrating low intraclass correlation coefficients or floor effects were removed. Both exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis analyses (n = 1914 low-income teens) were used to finalize the scale; internal consistency was assessed by Cronbach’s alpha. Concurrent validity was established by correlating the PBPA with the PA questionnaire for adolescents using a Spearman correlation. Results: The exploratory factor analysis yielded a 38-item, 7-factor solution, which was cross-validated by confirmatory factor analysis (comparative-fit index, nonnormed fit index = .90). The scale’s Cronbach’s alpha was .94, with subscales ranging from .70 to .88. The PBPA Survey for Low-Income Adolescents’ concurrent validity was supported by a negative PA questionnaire for adolescents’ correlation values. Conclusion: The PBPA Survey for Low-Income Adolescents can be used to better understand the relationship between PBPA among low-income teens. Further research is warranted to validate the scale with other adolescent subgroups.


1992 ◽  
Vol 71 (3_suppl) ◽  
pp. 1264-1266 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael V. Ellis ◽  
David L. Blustein

In response to Stead and Watson (1992), we reassessed the construct validity of the Commitment to Career Choices Scale using an age-constrained sample from our aggregate data base. A confirmatory factor analysis yielded findings comparable to Stead and Watson's results, thereby suggesting that their findings were likely due to using a homogeneous sample with truncated scores. Given the theoretical importance of measuring the full range of the two commitment to career choices continua, it seems premature to delete items from the scales for research with South African university students. Alternatively, we encourage the use of norms to interpret scores from the scales.


2015 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Petrus Nel ◽  
Marieta Du Plessis ◽  
Leon Bosman

Orientation: Given the interest in the importance of emotional intelligence in employees and leaders with regard to performance of their jobs, it is imperative to use reliable and validinstruments to operationalise emotional intelligence.Research purpose: The purpose of the study was to assess the psychometric properties of three different versions of the Rahim emotional intelligence index (EQI), specifically withregard to its factor structure and reliability, using two different samples.otivation for the study: No previous study has investigated which version of the Rahim EQI is the most appropriate for conducting research within South African organisations. Inaddition, the question of whether the Rahim EQI measures a strong general factor has notbeen answered.Research approach, design, and method: A cross-sectional quantitative research design wasused. Two samples were used (n = 470 and n = 308). The first sample completed the 40-itemversion of the Rahim EQI, whilst the second sample completed the 30-item version of the Rahim EQI. The measurement model, representing the 22-item version of the Rahim EQI, was also fitted to both these samples. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to compare thedifferent versions, as well as conceptualisations, of the Rahim EQI.Main findings: The 22-item version of the Rahim EQI exhibited better model fit than the 40-item and 30-item versions. In addition, the bifactor model suggested that the Rahim EQIseems to measure a strong general factor (emotional intelligence) with very little evidence ofthe presence of unique group factors (self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy and social skills).Practical/managerial implications: Both the reliability and factor structure of the 22-item version of the Rahim EQI have been confirmed. The bifactor structure should inform researchers and practitioners that, in order to understand emotional intelligence, it is better to conceptualise it as a unidimensional construct.Contribution/value-add: In order to identify the most appropriate conceptualisation associated with the Rahim EQI, various goodness-of-fit statistics (e.g. comparative fit indexand root mean square error of approximation) should be consulted. The impact of the removalof items from instruments should be investigated with regard to the accuracy with which the construct is to be measured. The current study has also contributed to the literature byexamining the psychometric properties of the Rahim EQI in a South African sample.


2016 ◽  
Vol 47 (3) ◽  
pp. 389-400 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rizwana Roomaney ◽  
Sarah van Eeden ◽  
Ashraf Kagee

This study aimed to determine the factor structure of the Health-Promoting Lifestyle Profile II scale in a South African sample. The sample consisted of 211 students at a university. Students completed an online survey that included the 52-item Health-Promoting Lifestyle Profile II. Confirmatory factor analysis, items analysis, and exploratory factor analysis were used to determine the factor structure of the Health-Promoting Lifestyle Profile II and reduce the number of items. Confirmatory factor analysis did not confirm the original six-factor structure for the Health-Promoting Lifestyle Profile II. The measure produced high internal consistency value (Cronbach’s alpha = .92) indicating over-redundancy of items. Item analysis was conducted in order to reduce the number of items. A subsequent exploratory factor analysis yielded a six-factor model for the Health-Promoting Lifestyle Profile II in the current sample. The final 24-item measure demonstrated good reliability (Cronbach’s alpha = .87) and can be used as an alternative to the original measure within the current sample.


2009 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Melinde Coetzee ◽  
Dries Schreuder

This study investigated the use of the Career Orientations Inventory as a measure to determine the career orientations of a random sample of 2 978 participants at predominantly managerial and supervisory level in the service industry. Whereas an exploratory factor analysis yielded a nine-factor structure, a confirmatory factor analysis confirmed five constructs as measures of the career orientations domain. A similar factorial pattern was observed across the African and white groups and a weaker factorial pattern across the Indian and coloured groups. The findings of this study contribute valuable new knowledge to both the practice and the field of Career Psychology.


1994 ◽  
Vol 75 (1) ◽  
pp. 239-242 ◽  
Author(s):  
Graham B. Stead ◽  
Mark B. Watson ◽  
Gerhard Mels

The responses of South African university students ( N = 303) to the Commitment to Career Choices Scale are analyzed by means of a confirmatory factor analysis as suggested by Ellis and Blustein in 1992. The results provide support for the 1992 findings of Stead and Watson.


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