scholarly journals A Concise Psychometric Tool to Measure Personal Characteristics for Surviving Natural Disasters: Development of a 16-Item Power to Live Questionnaire

Geosciences ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (9) ◽  
pp. 366 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryo Ishibashi ◽  
Rui Nouchi ◽  
Akio Honda ◽  
Tsuneyuki Abe ◽  
Motoaki Sugiura
Keyword(s):  
General Population ◽  
Personality Traits ◽  
Natural Disasters ◽  
Normative Data ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Short Form ◽  
Great East Japan Earthquake ◽  
Personality Characteristics ◽  
Disaster Mitigation ◽  
Short Version

The ability of individuals to manage and rebuild their lives after a disaster depends on environmental factors, as well as their own psychological characteristics. A psychometric questionnaire to measure personality traits relevant to disaster survival was proposed based on a large-scale investigation of survivors of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake (Sugiura et al. 2015). This tool, the Power to Live with Disasters questionnaire, measures eight personality characteristics that are beneficial for coping with disasters. However, this instrument has not been optimised for practical use; it is long and lacks benchmark scores for the general population. Thus, we developed a concise, 16-item version of the Power to Live with Disasters questionnaire through reanalysis of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake survivor data and an additional Web-based survey to obtain normative data from 1200 respondents drawn from the general population of Japan. The scores obtained from the short-form version of the questionnaire successfully replicated the results of the long-form version; eight distinct personality characteristics correlated well with several items associated with “successful survival” of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. The normative data of the full- and short-version questionnaires were also highly correlated. We propose use of the shortened questionnaire to determine the personality traits critical for survival in the face of unexpected, life-threatening situations caused by natural disasters. Our questionnaire could be useful in schools and other public settings to enhance disaster-mitigation efforts and resilience to disasters in the general population.

Evacuation Behaviors in the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake

2012 ◽  
Vol 7 (sp) ◽  
pp. 458-467 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nam-Yi Yun ◽  
◽  
Masanori Hamada
Keyword(s):  
Survival Rate ◽  
Natural Disasters ◽  
Human Impact ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Great East Japan Earthquake ◽  
Integrated Strategies ◽  
Sample Data ◽  
Evacuation Behavior ◽  
The Dead ◽  
Evacuation Behaviors

We studied relationships between evacuation place and time, predisaster preparedness, and evacuation behavior and survival rate for both the dead and missing and the survivors of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake. In order to elucidate the human impact, thousands of witnesses in areas from Tohoku to Kanto were analyzed. With a sample data number of 1,153, results show that behavior during the disaster differed for survivors and the dead and missing and that actual evacuation was associated positively with a higher survival rate. Based on these results, integrated strategies are proposed and discussed for the reduction of casualties in future large-scale natural disasters.

scholarly journals Comorbidity of Major Depression and Migraine — A Canadian Population-Based Study

2005 ◽  
Vol 50 (13) ◽  
pp. 832-837 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carmen V Molgat ◽  
Scott B Patten
Keyword(s):  
Major Depression ◽  
General Population ◽  
Chronic Conditions ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Short Form ◽  
Large Fraction ◽  
Strong Association ◽  
Medical Conditions ◽  
Major Depressive Episodes ◽  
Depressive Episodes

Objective: To estimate the prevalence of major depressive episodes (MDEs) in patients with migraine and to compare the strength of association with that of other long-term medical conditions. Methods: This study used a large-scale probability sample (over 130 000 sample) from the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS), a cross-sectional survey conducted by Statistics Canada. The CCHS screened for a broad set of medical conditions. Major depression was evaluated with the Composite International Diagnostic Interview Short Form for Major Depression, and the diagnosis of migraine was self-reported. The annual prevalence of major depression was calculated in the general population, in subjects with migraine, and in those with chronic conditions other than migraine. Results: The prevalence of major depression in subjects reporting migraine was higher than that in the general population or in subjects with other chronic medical conditions (17.6%, compared with 7.4% and 7.8%, respectively). Conclusions: There is a strong association between major depression and migraine. The migraine–MDE association may account for a large fraction of the chronic condition–MDE association. The association between migraines and MDE differs from that of other chronic conditions, as the association persists into older age groups.

Development and Psychometric Evaluation of a Short Version of the Time Perspective Inventory

2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 172-181 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Danner ◽  
Lisa Treiber ◽  
Michael Bosnjak
Keyword(s):  
General Population ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Time Perspective ◽  
Reliability And Validity ◽  
Psychometric Evaluation ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Short Version ◽  
Five Dimensions ◽  
Short Scale ◽  
Gender Groups

Abstract. Time perspective describes to what extent people draw on past memories, experience the present, or focus on future goals. Five dimensions of time perspective can be distinguished: past negative, present hedonistic, future, past positive, and present fatalistic. Based on a probability-based sample ( N = 2,031) representative for the general population in Germany, we developed a 10-item time perspective scale that can be used in data collection contexts with limited resources for assessing specific constructs, such as large-scale surveys of the general population. Starting with a comprehensive German instrument assessing time perspective, we selected 10 items based on expert ratings and factor loadings. The reliability and validity of our short scale and its measurement invariance for women and men were assessed. The results suggest that the short scale is sufficiently reliable, allows the valid measurement of all five time perspective dimensions, and can be used for both gender groups. Reference statistics for the German general population are reported, limitations are being discussed, and avenues for future research are being sketched.

scholarly journals Long-Term Medical Conditions and Major Depression: Strength of Association for Specific Conditions in the General Population

2005 ◽  
Vol 50 (4) ◽  
pp. 195-202 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott B Patten ◽  
Cynthia A Beck ◽  
Aliya Kassam ◽  
Jeanne VA Williams ◽  
Corrado Barbui ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Major Depression ◽  
General Population ◽  
Health Survey ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Short Form ◽  
Composite International Diagnostic Interview ◽  
Chronic Fatigue ◽  
Medical Conditions ◽  
Strength Of Association

Background: The prevalence of major depression (MD) in persons with nonpsychiatric medical conditions is an indicator of clinical need in those groups, an indicator of the feasibility of screening and case-finding efforts, and a source of etiologic hypotheses. This analysis explores the prevalence of MD in the general population in relation to various long-term medical conditions. Methods: We used a dataset from a large-scale Canadian national health survey, the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS). The sample consisted of 115 071 subjects aged 18 years and over, randomly sampled from the Canadian population. The survey interview recorded self-reported diagnoses of various long-term medical conditions and employed a brief predictive interview for MD, the Composite International Diagnostic Interview Short Form for Major Depression. Logistic regression was used to adjust estimates of association for age and sex. Results: The conditions most strongly associated with MD were chronic fatigue syndrome (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] 7.2) and fibromyalgia (AOR 3.4). The conditions least strongly associated were hypertension (AOR 1.2), diabetes, heart disease, and thyroid disease (AOR 1.4 in each case). We found associations with various gastrointestinal, neurologic, and respiratory conditions. Conclusions: A diverse set of long-term medical conditions are associated with MD, although previous studies might have lacked power to detect some of these associations. The strength of association in prevalence data, however, varies across specific conditions.

Personality Characteristics of Occupational Therapy Students and Clinicians

1989 ◽  
Vol 56 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Ted Brown
Keyword(s):  
General Population ◽  
Occupational Therapy ◽  
Personality Traits ◽  
Analysis Of Variance ◽  
Social Recognition ◽  
Personality Characteristics ◽  
Occupational Groups ◽  
Personality Variables ◽  
Occupational Therapy Students ◽  
Personality Research

Various occupational groups are often viewed as having a set of distinctive personality characteristics. The purpose of this study was to examine the personality traits of five subject groups: occupational therapy students in first, second, third and fourth years (N = 60) at the School of Rehabilitation Therapy at Queen 's University, and practicing occupational therapy clinicians from the Kingston area (N = 22). The Personality Research Form—E (PRF-E) was used to collect the data. As a combined group, students and clinicians were not distinguishable from the general population in terms of personality. For students notable correlation scores (p .01) between the year of study and the obtained PRF-E scores were observed on two scales: endurance (r = −0.31) and nurturance (r = −0.41). Analysis of variance indicated statistically significant differences (p .01 and p .05) between fourth year students and clinicians on certain personality variables. Fourth year students scored higher on the abasement, affiliation, change, nurturance, play and social recognition scales. Clinicians obtained higher scores for endurance and harm avoidance.

Short-Form Application of the Screening Test of Spanish Grammar and the Northwestern Syntax Screening Test to Latino Children

1978 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 220-235
Author(s):  
David L. Ratusnik ◽  
Carol Melnick Ratusnik ◽  
Karen Sattinger
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Metropolitan Area ◽  
Screening Test ◽  
Normative Data ◽  
Short Form ◽  
Latino Children ◽  
Data Application ◽  
York Metropolitan Area ◽  
Multiple Regression Technique

Short-form versions of the Screening Test of Spanish Grammar (Toronto, 1973) and the Northwestern Syntax Screening Test (Lee, 1971) were devised for use with bilingual Latino children while preserving the original normative data. Application of a multiple regression technique to data collected on 60 lower social status Latino children (four years and six months to seven years and one month) from Spanish Harlem and Yonkers, New York, yielded a small but powerful set of predictor items from the Spanish and English tests. Clinicians may make rapid and accurate predictions of STSG or NSST total screening scores from administration of substantially shortened versions of the instruments. Case studies of Latino children from Chicago and Miami serve to cross-validate the procedure outside the New York metropolitan area.

Following the Ants

2017 ◽  
Vol 33 (6) ◽  
pp. 409-421 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne B. Janssen ◽  
Martin Schultze ◽  
Adrian Grötsch
Keyword(s):  
Short Form ◽  
Supervisor Support ◽  
Proactive Personality ◽  
Work Behavior ◽  
Model Fit ◽  
Item Selection ◽  
Short Version ◽  
Innovative Work Behavior ◽  
Innovative Work ◽  
Two Measures

Abstract. Employees’ innovative work is a facet of proactive work behavior that is of increasing interest to industrial and organizational psychologists. As proactive personality and supervisor support are key predictors of innovative work behavior, reliable, and valid employee ratings of these two constructs are crucial for organizations’ planning of personnel development measures. However, the time for assessments is often limited. The present study therefore aimed at constructing reliable short scales of two measures of proactive personality and supervisor support. For this purpose, we compared an innovative approach of item selection, namely Ant Colony Optimization (ACO; Leite, Huang, & Marcoulides, 2008 ) and classical item selection procedures. For proactive personality, the two item selection approaches provided similar results. Both five-item short forms showed a satisfactory reliability and a small, however negligible loss of criterion validity. For a two-dimensional supervisor support scale, ACO found a reliable and valid short form. Psychometric properties of the short version were in accordance with those of the parent form. A manual supervisor support short form revealed a rather poor model fit and a serious loss of validity. We discuss benefits and shortcomings of ACO compared to classical item selection approaches and recommendations for the application of ACO.

Personality of Clown Doctors

2016 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 49-55 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alberto Dionigi
Keyword(s):  
General Population ◽  
Personality Traits ◽  
Big Five ◽  
Normal Population ◽  
Big Five Personality Traits ◽  
Published Data ◽  
Big Five Personality

Abstract. In recent years, both professional and volunteer clowns have become familiar in health settings. The clown represents a peculiar humorist’s character, strictly associated with the performer’s own personality. In this study, the Big Five personality traits (BFI) of 155 Italian clown doctors (130 volunteers and 25 professionals) were compared to published data for the normal population. This study highlighted specific differences between clown doctors and the general population: Clown doctors showed higher agreeableness, conscientiousness, openness, and extraversion, as well as lower neuroticism compared to other people. Moreover, specific differences emerged comparing volunteers and professionals: Professional clowns showed significantly lower in agreeableness compared to their unpaid colleagues. The results are also discussed with reference to previous studies conducted on groups of humorists. Clowns’ personalities showed some peculiarities that can help to explain the facility for their performances in the health setting and that are different than those of other groups of humorists.

Translation and Validation of the Thai Version of the Wisconsin Quality of Life Questionnaire (TH WISQoL) for Kidney Stone Patients

2020 ◽  
Vol 103 (11) ◽  
pp. 1194-1199
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Internal Consistency ◽  
Kidney Stone ◽  
Convergent Validity ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Short Form ◽  
Outcome Measurement ◽  
Life Questionnaire ◽  
Sf 36

Objective: To develop and validate a Thai version of the Wisconsin Quality of Life (TH WISQoL) Questionnaire. Materials and Methods: The authors developed the TH WISQoL Questionnaire based on a standard multi-step process. Subsequently, the authors recruited patients with kidney stone and requested them to complete the TH WISQoL and a validated Thai version of the 36-Item Short Form Survey (TH SF-36). The authors calculated the internal consistency and interdomain correlation of TH WISQoL and compared the convergent validity between the two instruments. Results: Thirty kidney stone patients completed the TH WISQoL and the TH SF-36. The TH WISQoL showed acceptable internal consistency for all domains (Cronbach’s alpha 0.768 to 0.909). Interdomain correlation was high for most domains (r=0.698 to 0.779), except for the correlation between Vitality and Disease domains, which showed a moderate correlation (r=0.575). For convergent validity, TH WISQoL demonstrated a good overall correlation to TH SF-36, (r=0.796, p<0.05). Conclusion: The TH WISQoL is valid and reliable for evaluating the quality of life of Thai patients with kidney stone. A further large-scale multi-center study is warranted to confirm its applicability in Thailand. Keywords: Quality of life, Kidney stone, Validation, Outcome measurement

scholarly journals Development and validation of a short version of the Sarcopenia Quality of Life questionnaire: the SF-SarQoL

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Geerinck ◽  
C. Beaudart ◽  
J.-Y. Reginster ◽  
M. Locquet ◽  
C. Monseur ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Short Form ◽  
Reduction Process ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Short Version ◽  
Second Phase ◽  
Life Questionnaire ◽  
Quality Of Life Questionnaire ◽  
Two Phases

Abstract Purpose To facilitate the measurement of quality of life in sarcopenia, we set out to reduce the number of items in the previously validated Sarcopenia Quality of Life (SarQoL®) questionnaire, and to evaluate the clinimetric properties of this new short form. Methods The item reduction process was carried out in two phases. First, information was gathered through item-impact scores from older people (n = 1950), a Delphi method with sarcopenia experts, and previously published clinimetric data. In the second phase, this information was presented to an expert panel that decided which of the items to include in the short form. The newly created SFSarQoL was then administered to older, community-dwelling participants who previously participated in the SarcoPhAge study. We examined discriminative power, internal consistency, construct validity, test–retest reliability, structural validity and examined item parameters with a graded response model (IRT). Results The questionnaire was reduced from 55 to 14 items, a 75% reduction. A total of 214 older, community-dwelling people were recruited for the validation study. The clinimetric evaluation showed that the SF-SarQoL® can discriminate on sarcopenia status [EWGSOP2 criteria; 34.52 (18.59–43.45) vs. 42.86 (26.56–63.69); p = 0.043], is internally consistent (α = 0.915, ω = 0.917) and reliable [ICC = 0.912 (0.847–0.942)]. A unidimensional model was fitted (CFI = 0.978; TLI = 0.975; RMSEA = 0.108, 90% CI 0.094–0.123; SRMR = 0.055) with no misfitting items and good response category separation. Conclusions A new, 14-item, short form version of the Sarcopenia Quality of Life questionnaire has been developed and shows good clinimetric properties.

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