Forgiveness is a construct that has captured the interest of researchers and practitioners across various fields, from philosophy to biology; however, defining and measuring forgiveness has been a challenge because of its complex nature. By drawing on relationships discovered in past studies, reviewing definitions across disciplines, and noting weaknesses in current forgiveness measures, the task of developing a broadly applicable forgiveness measure with strong theoretical and psychometric roots resulted in the creation of the General Measure of Forgiveness (GMF). The GMF is a brief, Likert response questionnaire that is appropriate for both relationship and non-relationship transgressions; heretofore, there has not been an established measure for non-relationship trangressions. This study was an initial investigation into the psychometric properties of the GMF. In an online design, college participants (n=343) were administered the GMF along with an established interpersonal measure of forgiveness, the Enright Forgiveness Inventory (EFI: Enright & Rique, 2004), and other measures of theoretically related and unrelated constructs. For the forgiveness measures, participants completed the GMF and EFI (order counterbalanced) in response to the same self-generated relationship transgression, then completed the GMF in response to a self-generated non-relationship transgression. Results supported the internal consistency of the GMF (Cronbach's alphas of .93 for both relationship and non-relationship forgiveness) and an exploratory factor analysis identified a primary factor accounting for about 30% of the total item variance. Convergent and discriminant validity analyses resulted in largely predicted relationships (e.g., r = .81 for GMFrelationship and EFI; r = .78 for GMFnon-relationship and a single-item assessment of forgiveness; r = -.26 for GMFrelationship and anger and aggression). These results are encouraging as use of the GMF could open new areas of research in non-relationship forgiveness and enhance research and application of relationship forgiveness. Specifically, the GMF holds promise for improving research by providing a brief, non-proprietary, and broadly applicable measure of forgiveness. Broadly, the study suggests that a general measure of forgiveness is feasible. / Master of Science

<p dir="ltr">Fearlessness is a construct often discussed in clinical and personality psychology. However, at the self-report trait level, there is little work focusing on its empirical structure and how that applies to measurement. The present study examined the IPIP-Fearlessness scale using experience sampling methodology to examine how scores on the measure predict behaviors in daily life. Using a pre-registered analytical approach, participants completed a baseline survey and brief daily surveys six times daily for one full week. The final sample consisted of 241 participants. Criterion variables measuring boldness, general personality, sensation seeking, and sensitivity to reward and punishment were also correlated with the IPIP-Fearlessness measure’s subscales, and a confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the measure’s structure.</p><p dir="ltr">Results showed that two of the IPIP-Fearless subscales (Low Anxiety and Sociability) did predict daily behaviors, whereas there were not significant predictions found for the other behaviors. Affect (negative, positive, anxious, bored) was also found to be significant predictor for several of the behavioral outcome variables, as well as interpersonal status. Additional exploratory analyses were also conducted. The findings from this study continue to elucidate how we can use empirically derived self-report trait fearlessness, and its relationship to additional constructs and behaviors.</p>

This study was performed to show advantages of Item Response THeory (IRT) over Classical Test Theory (CTT). Item Response THeory is a complex theory with many applications. This study used one application, test analysis. Ten items from a social psychology midterm were analyzed in order to show how IRT is more accurate than CTT, because IRT has the ability to add and delete individual items. Also, IRT features the Item Characteristic Curve (ICC) to give an easy to read interpretation of the results. The results showed the levels of the three indexes, item discrimination, difficulty, and guessing. The results indicated in which area each item was weak or strong. With this information, suggestions can be made to improve the item and ultimately improve the measurement accuracy of the entire test. Classical Test Theory cannot do this on individual item basis without changing the accuracy of the entire test. The results of this study confirm that IRT can be used to analyze individual items and allow for the improvement or revision of the item. This means IRT can be used for test analysis in a more efficient and accurate manner than CTT. This study provides an introduction to Item Response Theory in the hopes that more research will be performed to establish IRT as a commonly used tool for improving testing measurement.

Conclusion. The construct of neurasthenia was assessed to be characterized mainly by features of irritability and nervousness, which resembles more to the concept of stress rather than anxiety or depression. As predicted by recent theories on the relationship between negative affects, neurasthenia was found to share both unique and common characteristics with stress, anxiety and depression. In addition to sharing a common general distress factor, specific postulations were made about the distinctiveness of neurasthenia as a clinical syndrome from anxiety, depression and CFS. Between-group analysis showed a relatively stable and coherent construct of neurasthenia between the Hong Kong and Changsha samples. The early view that neurasthenia represents a disguise form of depression by way of somatization was not supported by the present results. The general tendency to endorse lower scores on both the somatic and psychological items for all of the administered scales in Changsha reflects a possible change in cultural templates of "neurasthenia" and "somatization" to more psychologically oriented templates of "stress" and "social desirability" for expressing somatic and psychological distress in modern china. The present research demonstrated the use and advantages of adopting a psychometric approach to investigate the construct of neurasthenia in a cross-cultural setting. / Methods. Two independent samples of Chinese from Hong Kong (N = 868) and Changsha (N = 1001) were compared on the newly refined Chinese Neurasthenia Scale (CN5-12), as well as a number of mood, personality and cognitive measures, including Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21), Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Eysenck Personality Inventory (EPI) and Automatic Thought Questionnaire (ATQ). The construct of neurasthenia and its relationship with the relevant measures was examined by way of detailed psychometric, correlational and factor analyses. Different structural models of neurasthenia in relation to stress, anxiety, and depression were tested and compared in the two Chinese samples using Structural Equation Modeling. Comparisons of sample means were assessed by ANCOVA with potential confounds being controlled as covariates. / Objectives. The present study employed a psychometric approach to investigate the construct of neurasthenia in respect of two fundamental issues: (1) the major characteristics that constitute neurasthenia as a distinctive construct; and (2) the cultural variability in the construct of neurasthenia between Chinese samples in different cultural settings. Another major aim of the present research was to refine and update the Chinese Neurasthenia Scale originally developed by the author for assessing the construct of neurasthenia. / Results. All of the scales administered including the newly refined Chinese Neurasthenia scale (cNs-12) were found to attain very good psychometric properties. According to factor analyses, the construct of neurasthenia as assessed by CNs-12 was found to comprise four major components, namely (a) Irritability and Nervousness, (b) musculoskeletal Aches and Pains, (c) Functional Impairment, and (d) Sleep disturbances and Fatigue. contrary to current taxonomic systems, irritability rather than fatigue or weakness was found to represent the major feature of neurasthenia. As shown by correlational and multiple regression analyses, the construct of neurasthenia also showed closer resemblance to the concept of stress when compared to anxiety and depression. According to the results of SEM, both irritability and chronic fatigue were found to be the specific markers for neurasthenia when distinguishing from anxiety and depression. Moreover, the presence of irritability might constitute a specific marker to differentiate neurasthenia from chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). No significant sample differences were found in the factor structure of neurasthenia, as well as its pattern of relationships with the relevant mood, personality and cognitive variables between the two Chinese samples. The most striking sample difference pertained to a general tendency for the Changsha sample to endorse a lower level of distress on both somatic and psychological symptoms than the Hong Kong sample. / Wong, Kit Ching. / "May 2008." / Adviser: Helen Chiu. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 70-03, Section: B, page: 1587. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 158-178). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. [Ann Arbor, MI] : ProQuest Information and Learning, [200-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / School code: 1307.

Background: The Patient Health Questionnaire PHQ-9 is a widely used instrument to screen for depression in clinical research. The first aim of this study was to psychometrically test the PHQ-9 in a large sample of cancer patients. The second aim was to calculate unbiased estimates of the depression burden for several cancer groups taking into account age and gender distributions. Methods: A sample of 2,059 cancer patients with varying diagnoses were examined in this study six months after discharge from a rehabilitation clinic. A representative sample of 2,693 people from the general population served as controls. Expected PHQ-9 mean scores of the general population sample, regressed on age and gender, were calculated to enable a fair comparison of different groups of cancer patients. Results: While the reliability (Cronbach’s alpha) for the PHQ-9 scale was good (alpha ≥ 0.84), the CFA fit indices of the one-dimensional solution were unsatisfactory in the patients’ sample. The factorial analysis confirmed two factors. PHQ-9 mean scores for 15 types of cancer are given, ranging from 4.0 (prostate) to 8.2 (thyroid gland). Differences between expected mean scores (derived from the general population) and raw mean scores of the cancer subsamples are reported that provide a better estimate of the depression burden. Conclusions: The results confirmed that the PHQ-9 performs well in testing depression in cancer patients. Regression coefficients can be used for performing unbiased comparisons among cancer groups, not only for this study. The burden of patients with testis cancer and Hodgkin lymphoma is underestimated when age and gender are not taken into account.

Dissertation (D.Phil.) -- University of Stellenbosch, 1999. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The conditions under which selection procedures are typically validated and those prevailing at the eventual use of a selection procedure normally differ to a sufficient extent to challenge the relevance of the validation research evidence. Statistical corrections to the validity coefficient are generally available. The remainder of the argument in terms of which a selection procedure is developed and justified could, however, also be biased by any discrepancy between the conditions under which the selection procedure is simulated and those prevailing at the eventual use of the selection procedure. Relatively little concern, however, seem to exist for the transportability of the decision function derived from the selection simulation or the descriptions/ assessments of selection decision utility and fairness. This seems to be a somewhat strange state of affairs. The external validity problems with validation designs are reasonably well documented. It is thus not as if the psychometric literature is unaware of the problem of generalizing validation study research fmdings to the eventual area of application. The decision function is probably the pivot of the selection procedure in that it firstly captures the underlying performance theory, but more importantly from a practical perspective, because it guides the actual accept and reject choices of applicants. Restricting the statistical corrections to the validity coefficient would leave the decision function unaltered even though it might also be distorted by the same factors affecting the validity coefficient. Basically the same logic also applies to the evaluation of the decision rule in terms of selection utility and fairness. Correcting only the validity coefficient would leave the "bottom-line" evaluation of the selection procedure unaltered. Restricting the statistical corrections to the validity coefficient basically means that practically speaking nothing really changes. The fundamental research objective is to determine whether any discrepancy between the conditions under which the selection procedure is simulated and those prevailing at the eventual use of the selection procedure produces bias in estimates required to specify and justify the procedure; to delineate appropriate statistical corrections of the validity coefficient, decision rule and descriptions/ assessments of selection decision utility and -1< fairness, required to align the contexts of evaluation/validation and application; and to determine whether the corrections should be applied in validation research. The study provides no unqualified answers to the question whether corrections for various forms of range restriction and/ or criterion unreliability should be applied to the validity coefficient, the standard error of the validity coefficient or the parameters of the regression of the criterion on the predictor. Under specific conditions the corrections do affect decisions on the validity of performance hypotheses due to its effect on decisions on the significance of the uncorrected versus the corrected validity coefficient. Under specific conditions the corrections do affect decisions on applicants, especially when selection decisions are not restricted by selection quotas, due to its effect on the slope and intercept parameters of the regression of Y on X, and/ or due to its effect on the standard error of estimate. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die toestande waaronder keuringsprosedures tipes gevalideer word en die toestande waaronder die prosedure uiteindelik gebruik word, verskil normaalweg tot so 'n mate dat die relevansie van die bevindinge in die gedrang kom. Statistiese korreksies vir die geldigheidskoeffisient is algemeen beskikbaar. Die res van die argument in terme waarvan 'n keuringsprosedure ontwikkel en regverdig word kan egter ook verwring word deur dieselfde verskille tussen die toestande waaronder die keuringsprosedure gesimuleer word en die waaronder die prosedure uiteindelik gebruik word. Relatief min kommer bestaan skynbaar egter ten opsigte van die oordraagbaarheid van die besluitnemingsfunksie wat onder die gesimuleerde toestande ontwikkel is of ten opsigte van die verkree beskrywings van nut en billikheid. Hierdie toedrag van sake val ietwat vreemd op. Die eksteme geldigheidprobleme geassosieer met validasie-ontwerpe is redelik goed gedokumenteer. Dit is dus nie asof die psigometrika-literatuur onbewus is van die probleem wat by die veralgemening van resultate van geldigheidstudies ter sprake is nie. Die besluitnemingsfunksie is waarskynlik die spil waarom die keuringsprosedure draai daarin dat dit die onderliggende prestasie-teorie vergestalt, maar meer belangrik, daarin dat dit die daadwerklike aanvaarding en verwerping van applikante bepaal. Indien statistiese korreksies tot die geldigheidskoeffisient beperk word bly die besluitnemingsfunksie onveranderd, alhoewel dit ook moontlik verwring mag word deur dieselfde faktore wat sydigheid in die geldigheidskoeffisient te weeg bring. Dieselfde logika geld ook ten opsigte van die evaluasie van die besluitnemingsfunksie in terme van nut en billikheid. Indien slegs die geldigheidskoeffisient gekorrigeer word bly d.e "bottom-line" evaluasie van die keuringsprosedure onveranderd. Prakties gesproke dus, verander niks indien statistiese korreksies tot die geldigheidskoeffisient beperk word. Die fundamentele navorsingsdoelstelling is om vas te stel of verskille tussen die toestande waaronder die keuringsprosedure gevalideer word, en die toestande waaronder die prosedure uiteindelik gebruik word, sydigheid te weeg bring in die maatstawwe wat vereis word om die keuringsprosedure te spesifiseer en te regverdig; om toepaslike statistiese korreksies vir die geldigheidskoeffisient, besluitnnemingsreel en beskrywings van nut en billikheid af te lei ten einde die kontekste van simulasie/ validasie en toepassing te versoen; en om vas te stel of sodanige korreksies wel in validasie-navorsing toegepas behoort te word. Die studie verskaf geen ongekwalifiseerde antwoord op die vraag of korreksies vir die verskeie vorms van variansie-inperking en/ of kriterium onbetroubaarheid op die geldigheidskoeffisient, die standaardfout van die geldigheidskoefisient of die parameters van die regressie van die kriterium op die voorspeller toegepas behoort te word nie. Die korreksies affekteer wel besluite aangaande die geldigheid van prestasiehipoteses onder spesifieke toestande. Die korreksies het ook onder bepaalde toestande 'n effek op besluite aangaande applikante deur hul effek op die regressiekoeffisiente en/ of die standaardskattingsfout.

This project represents a descriptive study of 35 chronically mentally ill (CMI) adults enrolled in a community-based vocational rehabilitation program during the 1981 calendar year. As part of their first month in the program, subjects were administered a screening battery consisting of the Trail Making Test, Reitan-Indiana Aphasia Screening Test, Reitan-Klove Sensory Perceptual Examination, Valpar Independent Problem Solving Work Sample (IPSWS) and Wide Range Interest Opinion Test (WRIOT). Correlations were derived among these and with other variables, including the Work Adjustment Rating Form, schizophrenic versus nonschizophrenic psychiatric diagnosis, time in program and period of competitive employment resulting from program involvement. The issue of medication and its potential for impacting on subjects' performance in the program was also addressed. The neuropsychological measures in the battery were significantly correlated among themselves and discriminated between schizophrenic and nonschizophrenic CMI subjects in the sample with 100% accuracy. However, results on neuropsychological tests did not predict whether or not a subject would realize competitive employment during the year of the study. Both schizophrenic and nonschizophrenic subjects produced average performances in the impaired range of functioning according to published criteria for the neuropsychological instruments, although schizophrenic subjects consistently performed closer to the normal population. Vocational instruments included in the battery appeared to measure a more heterogeneous set of functions than the neuropsychological tests, and did not appear to represent a vocational factor. Two scores from these vocational instruments, Valpar IPSWS and WRIOT Negative Bias, were combined with Trail Making Test (Part A) scores in a discriminant function that classified subjects with 81% accuracy on attainment of competitive employment status. Over half (56%) of the people who participated for three months or more experienced some competitive employment, and 39% of those who completed three months or more were able to maintain full-time or part-time competitive employment for longer than 60 days. These results supported the effectiveness of Fountain House Model programs in achieving vocational rehabilitation goals with the difficult CMI population. Support was also provided for community-based research to study both social programs and their clientele.

Bakgrund: Self-efficacy, en persons tilltro till sin förmåga, är en faktor som påverkar hälsobeteenden såsom fysisk aktivitet. Exercise Self-Efficacy Scale mäter denna egenskap genom självskattning, men har inte utvärderats för personer med schizofreni. Syfte: Att omarbeta Exercise Self-Efficacy Scale för personer med schizofreni. Metod: Deskriptiv design med psykometrisk prövning av den omarbetade Exercise Self-Efficacy Scale. Första delen av studien bestod av fokusgrupper med patienter och personal på en psykiatrisk öppenvårdsmottagning för patienter med psykossjukdom. Utifrån resultatet av dessa utvecklades Exercise Self-Efficacy Scale – Schizophrenia Version. I den andra delen av studien fyllde 32 patienter med schizofreni eller schizoaffektivt syndrom i den omarbetade skalan vid två tillfällen med två veckors mellanrum. Beräkningar gjordes av inre överensstämmelse, test-retest reliabilitet och korrelation med självrapporterad fysisk aktivitet. Resultat: Fokusgrupperna gav rik information om faktorer såsom upplevda hinder för fysisk aktivitet och passande utformning av den nya skattningsskalan. Exercise Self-Efficacy Scale – Schizophrenia Version hade en mycket hög inre överensstämmelse (Cronbach's Alpha = 0,961) och test-retest reliabilitet (ICC = 0,951, p &lt; 0,001). Skattad self-efficacy hade ett samband med självrapporterad fysisk aktivitet (Spearman's rho = 0,531, p &lt; 0,01). Slutsats: Exercise Self-Efficacy Scale – Schizophrenia Version har hög reliabilitet och kan användas för självskattning av self-efficacy för fysisk aktivitet bland personer med schizofreni. Instrumentet kan vidareutvecklas genom att identifiera eventuellt överflödiga delfrågor. / Background: Self-efficacy is a factor that influences health behaviours such as physical activity. Exercise Self-Efficacy Scale is a self-rating scale designed to measure self-efficacy beliefs, but has not been evaluated for people with schizophrenia. Aim: To revise Exercise Self-Efficacy Scale for people with schizophrenia. Method: Descriptive design with psychometric evaluation of the revised Exercise Self-Efficacy Scale. The first part of the study included focus groups with patients and staff members at a psychiatric outpatient clinic for patients with psychosis. Based on the results of those, Exercise Self-Efficacy Scale – Schizophrenia Version was developed. In the second part of the study, 32 patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder completed the revised scale on two occasions separated by a two week interval. Internal consistency, test-retest reliability and correlation with self-reported physical activity were examined. Result: The focus groups gave rich information on factors such as perceived barriers to physical activity and suitable tailoring of the new rating scale. Exercise Self-Efficacy Scale – Schizophrenia Version showed a very high internal consistency (Cronbach's Alpha = 0,961) and test-retest reliability (ICC = 0,951, p &lt; 0,001). Rated self-efficacy showed a correlation with self-reported physical activity (Spearman's rho = 0,531, p &lt; 0,01). Conclusion: Exercise Self-Efficacy Scale – Schizophrenia Version has a high reliability and can be used for self-rating of exercise self-efficacy among people with schizophrenia. The instrument can be further developed by identifying potentially redundant items.

Background and aims: Many adults with congenitally malformed hearts are at risk for complications such as decreased function and capacity of the heart due to the heart defect and previously surgery. This advocates self-management behaviours related to medical treatments, physical activity, preventions of endocarditis, some restrictions regarding suitable employment and spare time activities, birth control and pregnancy, but also lifestyle concerns such as refraining from smoking and healthy eating. Sufficient knowledge and support are requirements for successful self-management. The overall aim of this thesis was to describe educational needs, develop a tool for assessing knowledge and to evaluate the effects of a follow-up model providing education and psychosocial support to adults with congenitally malformed hearts. Subjects and methods: Adults (≥18 years of age) with the ten most common heart defects namely ventricular septal defect, atrial septal defect, coarctation of the aortae, aortic valve stenosis (defined as uncomplicated heart defects) and tetralogy of Fallot, complete transposition of the great arteries, congenitally corrected transposition of the great arteries, Ebstein anomaly and Eisenmenger syndrome (defined as complicated heart defects) were included in the studies. To apprehend the educational needs (I), sixteen adults with heart malformations, ranging from 19-55 years of age, were interviewed and data were analysed qualitatively using phenomenographic method. As a tool to evaluate knowledge, an instrument named Knowledge scale for adults with Congenital Malformed Hearts (KnoCoMH) was developed and psychometrically evaluated (II) in 19 + 114 adults with the ten most common heart defects average age 34 ± 13.5. A model for follow-up was described and initially evaluated (III) by 55 adults with the most common heart defects and finally tested in a randomised controlled trial (IV) with a total of 114 adults with congenitally malformed hearts (56 participants in intervention group and 58 in control group with average age 34 ± 13.5). The intervention group recived a model for follow-up with individualise and computer-based eduction and psychosocial support by a multidisciplinary team. Results: Two-way communication when given information was found to be crucial in order to enhance knowledge (I). Knowledge was seen as a tool for managing important areas in life. The KnoCoMH (II) was found to be a valid and reliable scale and can now be used to estimate knowledge in adults with congenitally malformed hearts. The model for follow-up (III) was effective in improving and maintaining knowledge (IV) about self-management in adults with heart malformation.

The Oxford Knee Score (OKS) is a popular single summary questionnaire developed to measure the effect of knee replacement surgery from the patients' perspective. There has been a recent interest in the use of the OKS in populations of patients and in roles it has not been originally developed for. To date, no evidence has been provided about the measurement properties of the OKS when it is used outside the context or purpose for which it was originally designed. The general aim of this thesis is to investigate the measurement properties of the OKS when used in extended roles: a) within the population for which the OKS was originally intended and developed for (knee replacement) and, b) when applied on a different population, viz. patients undergoing non-operative treatment for knee osteoarthritis (OA). Four existing large-scale databases of patients undergoing knee replacement surgery and a database obtained from a prospective study on patients undergoing non-surgical management for knee OA were analyzed. The results demonstrate that: 1) it is possible to extract separate information on pain and functional disability from the OKS in a meaningful way (in the form of subscales). 2) For the first time, anchor-based Minimal Important Change (MIC) of 9 points and Minimal Important Difference (MID) of 5 points were established for joint replacement surgery. 3) The OKS demonstrated satisfactory evidence reliability, validity, responsiveness, and interpretability, when used in patients who are undergoing non-operative management for their knee OA. 4) Further evidence of validity was demonstrated by fitting the OKS to the Rasch model. 5) Lastly, it was demonstrated that thresholds can be applied on the OKS to distinguish between patients who consider their knee problem to be severe enough to warrant joint replacement surgery versus patients who do not. This supports the potential use of the OKS in decision making aids for secondary care referral. Overall the thesis provides critical evidence, not previously existing, to support the continued use, and extended use, of the OKS in orthopaedic medicine.