Assessing retirement satisfaction and perceptions of retirement experiences.

A 2-part investigation developed a measure of retirement as a life transition. Study 1 generated items from interviews with retirees (n?=?40) and service providers. Item analysis with recent retirees (n?=?86) produced a 51-item Retirement Satisfaction Inventory assessing 6 areas: preretirement work functioning, adjustment and change, reasons for retirement, satisfaction with life in retirement, current sources of enjoyment, and leisure and physical activities. Study 2 examined a heterogeneous sample of men (n?=?159) and women (n?=?243) retirees. Factor analyses produced internally consistent subscales. Moderate, but acceptable, test–retest reliability was demonstrated. Satisfaction scores correlated with concurrent measures and, together with pre- and postretirement experiences, discriminated 4 groups of voluntary and involuntary retirees. Few effects related to gender, SES, length of retirement, and part-time employment were found. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Development and evaluation of the Balanced Index of Psychological Mindedness (BIPM).

Psychological mindedness (PM) refers to a person's interest and ability to be in touch with and reflect on his or her psychological states and processes. In this multipart study, the authors present the Balanced Index of Psychological Mindedness (BIPM). The psychometric properties and clinical relevance of this 14-item self-report scale were examined in 2 community samples and a mental health patient sample in the Netherlands (total N = 1,211). The 7-item Interest and Insight subscales of the BIPM showed good internal consistency (Cronbach's αs = .85 and .76, respectively), test–retest reliability (r = .63 and .71, respectively), and construct validity (e.g., r > .40 with related constructs). PM was higher in women than in men. Relatively low PM was found among poorly educated people and in mental health patients (ps r = ?.21 to ?.36, p     

Attributional complexity: An individual differences measure.

Describes the development of a scale that measures the complexity of attributional schemata for human behavior—the Attributional Complexity Scale (ACS). In Study 1, the ACS was administered to 289 undergraduates. The results show that the ACS had adequate internal reliability and test–retest reliability, and a factor analysis yielded 1 major factor. Study 2 tested the discriminant and convergent validity of the ACS by administering it to 81 undergraduates. As predicted, attributional complexity was not related to social desirability, academic ability, or internal–external locus of control, but it was positively related to the need for cognition. Study 3 confirmed the prediction that psychology majors (n?=?59) would have more complex attributional schemata than natural science majors (n?=?35). Studies 4 and 5, with 174 Ss, provided evidence for the external validity of the scale: Attributionally complex Ss compared with attributionally simple Ss spontaneously produced more causes for personality dispositions and selected more complex causal attributions for simple behavioral events. Implications for various issues in social cognition are discussed. (48 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Playing with pets and longevity among older people.

Models of the relations between contact with pets and better health are examined in an archival prospective study using data derived from the longitudinal study initiated by Terman in 1921 (current N?=?343 men, 300 women) . In survival analyses of documented longevity, playing with pets in 1977 (M age?=?67 years) was not associated with mortality risk through 1991 for the total sample nor for those who were unmarried or those who were less satisfied with their human relationships. Playing with pets was not associated with health-prone attributes or healthy behaviors such as personality, social ties, education, and smoking. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychometric properties and U.S. National norms of the Evidence-Based Practice Attitude Scale (EBPAS).

[Correction Notice: An erratum for this article was reported in Vol 22(3) of Psychological Assessment (see record 2010-18043-022). There were three errors in Table 1 on p. 360. In the last row, the row label should be “Overall EBPAS mean,” M = 2.73, and SD = 0.49. The revised Table 1 appears in the erratum.] The Evidence-Based Practice Attitude Scale (EBPAS) assesses mental health and social service provider attitudes toward adopting evidence-based practices. Scores on the EBPAS derive from 4 subscales (i.e., Appeal, Requirements, Openness, and Divergence) as well as the total scale, and preliminary studies have linked EBPAS scores to clinic structure and policies, organizational culture and climate, and first-level leadership. EBPAS scores are also related to service provider characteristics, including age, education level, and level of professional development. The present study examined the factor structure, reliability, and norms of EBPAS scores in a sample of 1,089 mental health service providers from a nationwide sample drawn from 100 service institutions in 26 states in the United States. The study also examined associations of provider demographic characteristics with EBPAS subscale and total scores. Confirmatory factor analysis supported a second-order factor model, and reliability coefficients for the subscales ranged from .91 to .67 (total scale = .74). The study establishes national norms for the EBPAS so that comparisons can be drawn for U.S. local as well as international studies of attitudes toward evidence-based practices. The results suggest that the factor structure and reliability are likely generalizable to a variety of service provider contexts and different service settings and that the EBPAS subscales are associated with provider characteristics. Directions for future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Profiles of psychological functioning in the old and oldest old.

Cluster analysis was applied to 12 measures of intellectual, personality, self-related, and social functioning collected in the 1st cross-sectional wave of the Berlin Aging Study (BASE; N?=?516). Central questions concerned the number, profile desirability (functional status), and membership of the subgroups obtained. Of the 9 subgroups extracted, 4 reflected different patterns of desirable functioning (47% of the sample), and 5 reflected less desirable functioning (53%). Relative risk of a less desirable profile was 2.5 times higher for the oldest old (85–103 years) than for people between the ages of 70–84 years and was 1.25 times higher for women compared with men. Relationships with education, health, and mortality suggested underlying systemic differences. Consistent with theoretical propositions about a "4th age" and the incomplete architecture of life span development (P. B. Baltes, 1997), the oldest old appear to have a distinct and less desirable psychological profile. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Involuntary subordination and its relation to personality, mood, and submissive behavior.

According to social rank theory, involuntary subordination may be adaptive in species that compete for resources as a mechanism to switch off fighting behaviors when loss is imminent (thus saving an organism from injury). In humans, major depression is thought to occur when involuntary subordination becomes prolonged. The present study sought to operationalize involuntary subordination. Study 1 involved a reanalysis of a Gilbert and Allan (1998) study, with the hypothesis that social comparison (i.e., perceived status), submissive behavior, feelings of defeat, and entrapment would load on a common factor (interpreted as involuntary subordination). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis supported this model. In Study 2 measures of these same variables were administered to a group of undergraduate students. Eight items were selected from each measure (on the basis of item-total correlations) to form the Involuntary Subordination Questionnaire (ISQ). In Study 3 scores on the ISQ showed high levels of internal consistency and test–retest reliability in a sample of undergraduate students. Scores on the ISQ were significantly positively correlated with various neurotic personality styles and negatively correlated with variables indicating dominance or mastery. Involuntary subordination scores also significantly predicted change in social anxiety symptoms over 9 weeks. In Study 4 scores on the ISQ were examined in relation to nonverbal behaviors. In men, the ISQ was correlated with behaviors indicating a lack of confidence and submissiveness. Involuntary subordination appears to be a relatively stable trait with implications for personality, mood, and real-world behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Keyes's model of mental health with personal growth initiative as a parsimonious predictor.

This research addressed issues at the heart of counseling psychology: operationalizing mental health and identifying parsimonious ways of predicting levels of mental health. The primary purpose of the study was to investigate the replicability of the structure of C. L. M. Keyes's (2002) model of mental health in 2 samples of college students (total N = 244 women and 223 men). Results of confirmatory factor analyses supported this 3-factor model of psychological, social, and emotional well-being, consisting of 14 subdimensions. Furthermore, this model was found to be invariant for men and women in both samples. The secondary purpose was to assess the effectiveness of personal growth initiative (PGI; C. Robitschek, 1998) as a parsimonious predictor (i.e., 1 predictor for many outcomes) of these multiple dimensions of mental health. Results of structural equation modeling supported PGI as a parsimonious predictor of Keyes's multidimensional mental health model for men and women in both groups. Limitations are discussed, and implications for research and practice in counseling psychology are presented. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mental health professionals versus non-mental-health professionals: Childhood trauma and adult functioning.

Research on childhood family environments of mental health professionals suggests that therapists are often raised in dysfunctional families and experience significant psychological distress in adult life. This study examined the prevalence of childhood trauma, family dysfunction, and current psychological distress among female mental health professionals (N?=?340) and compared it with the prevalence among women working in other professions (N?=?2,623). Psychotherapists reported higher rates of physical abuse, sexual molestation, parental alcoholism, psychiatric hospitalization of a parent, death of a family member, and greater family dysfunction in their families of origin than did other professionals. As adults, psychotherapists experienced less anxiety, depression, dissociation, sleep disturbance, and impairment in interpersonal relationships than did women in professions other than mental health. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Development and validation of the Conflict in Adolescent Dating Relationships Inventory.

Four studies examined the Conflict in Adolescent Dating Relationships Inventory (CADRI), a measure of abusive behavior among adolescent dating partners. Exploratory factor analysis was used to refine items based on high school participants with dating experience (N?=?393; 49% female). Confirmatory factor analysis was used to derive and cross-validate the factor structure with participants from 10 high schools (N?=?1,019, 55% female; ages 14–16). The model structure fit for all grades and both sexes, with physical abuse, verbal abuse, and threatening behavior most representative of the underlying "abuse" factor. In Studies 3 and 4, the second-order abuse factor showed acceptable test–retest reliability, partner agreement, and correlation (significant for males only) between observer ratings of dating partners' interactions and youths' CADRI scores. Results support the CADRI as a measure of abusive behavior in adolescent dating relationships. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Development of the Counseling Center Assessment of Psychological Symptoms-62 (CCAPS-62).

Few instruments have been designed specifically to address the needs of college counseling centers. This article reviews existing instruments and presents 4 studies that describe the development and psychometric properties of a new instrument, the Counseling Center Assessment of Psychological Symptoms-62 (CCAPS-62). Study 1 describes the initial item development, factor analysis, and preliminary scale development steps. Study 2 describes the results of exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses using data from more than 22,000 clients pooled via a national practice-research network of counseling centers. Studies 3 and 4 provide preliminary evidence of subscales' convergent validity and retest reliability. Results from these 4 studies provide support for the instrument's factor structure, construct validity, and subscale reliabilities for both the total sample and subgroups. Clinical and methodological issues pertaining to the future development of the CCAPS are discussed in the context of a national practice-research network of college counseling centers. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Individual differences in causal uncertainty.

Presents a scale that measures chronic individual differences in people's uncertainty about their ability to understand and detect cause-and-effect relationships in the social world: the Causal Uncertainty Scale (CUS). The results of Study 1 indicated that the scale has good internal and adequate test–retest reliability. Additionally, the results of a factor analysis suggested that the scale appears to be tapping a single construct. Study 2 examined the convergent and discriminant validity of the scale, and Studies 3 and 4 examined the predictive and incremental validity of the scale. The importance of the CUS to work on depressives' social information processing and for basic research and theory on human social judgment processes is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Development and validation of the Eating Disorder Diagnostic Scale: A brief self-report measure of anorexia, bulimia, and binge-eating disorder.

This article describes the development and validation of a brief self-report scale for diagnosing anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge-eating disorder. Study 1 used a panel of eating-disorder experts and provided evidence for the content validity of this scale. Study 2 used data from female participants with and without eating disorders (N?=?367) and suggested that the diagnoses from this scale possessed temporal reliability (mean κ?=?.80) and criterion validity (with interview diagnoses; mean κ?=?.83). In support of convergent validity, individuals with eating disorders identified by this scale showed elevations on validated measures of eating disturbances. The overall symptom composite also showed test–retest reliability (r?=?.87), internal consistency (mean α?=?.89), and convergent validity with extant eating-pathology scales. Results implied that this scale was reliable and valid in this investigation and that it may be useful for clinical and research applications. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Social-information-processing factors in reactive and proactive aggression in children's peer groups.

In Study 1, a teacher-rating instrument was developed to assess these behaviors in elementary school children (N?=?259). Reactive and proactive scales were found to be internally consistent, and factor analyses partially supported convergent and discriminant validities. In Study 2, behavioral correlates of these forms of aggression were examined through assessments by peers (N?=?339). Both types of aggression related to social rejection, but only proactively aggressive boys were also viewed as leaders and as having a sense of humor. In Study 3, we hypothesized that reactive aggression (but not proactive aggression) would occur as a function of hostile attributional biases and intention-cue detection deficits. Four groups of socially rejected boys (reactive aggressive, proactive aggressive, reactive-proactive aggressive, and nonaggressive) and a group of average boys were presented with a series of hypothetical videorecorded vignettes depicting provocations by peers and were asked to interpret the intentions of the provocateur (N?=?117). Only the two reactive-aggressive groups displayed biases and deficits in interpretations. In Study 4, attributional biases and deficits were found to be positively correlated with the rate of reactive aggression (but not proactive aggression) displayed in free play with peers (N?=?127). These studies supported the hypothesis that attributional biases and deficits are related to reactive aggression but not to proactive aggression. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mental health professionals' skepticism about multiple personality disorder.

Three studies were conducted to investigate the nature of mental health professionals' skepticism regarding multiple personality disorder (MPD). An initial pilot study was conducted to develop a psychometrically sound survey instrument. In Study 2, the results of a national survey of 207 mental health professionals supported the hypothesis that skepticism and knowledge about MPD are inversely related, r?=?–.33, p?     

Psychometric properties of the Posttraumatic Stress Checklist among young African-American men and women.

Research has demonstrated the validity and reliability of the Posttraumatic Stress Checklist (PCL) in predominantly Caucasian samples. However, there has not been a study that examined the psychometric properties of the PCL specifically for African Americans. The present paper is an examination of the factor structure, internal stability, reliability, and predictive validity of the PCL among a sample of young African American men and women. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated better support for a two-factor model than for a three-factor model reflecting the three diagnostic symptom clusters of posttraumatic stress disorder. High internal consistency and marginal test–retest reliability were observed. The positive predictive power of the PCL in the present study was far lower than that observed in previous studies; several potential explanations for this finding are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Personality in adulthood: A six-year longitudinal study of self-reports and spouse ratings on the NEO Personality Inventory.

Previous longitudinal studies of personality in adulthood have been limited in the range of traits examined, have chiefly made use of self-reports, and have frequently included only men. In this study, self-reports (N?=?983) and spouse ratings (N?=?167) were gathered on the NEO Personality Inventory (Costa & McCrae, 1985b), which measures all five of the major dimensions of normal personality. Cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses on data from men and women aged 21 to 96 years showed evidence of small declines in Activity, Positive Emotions, and openness to Actions that might be attributed to maturation, but none of these effects was replicated in sequential analyses. The 20 other scales examined showed no consistent pattern of maturational effects. In contrast, retest stability was quite high for all five dimensions in self-reports and for the three dimensions measured at both times in spouse ratings. Comparable levels of stability were seen for men and women and for younger and older subjects. The data support the position that personality is stable after age 30. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An archival prospective study of mental health and longevity.

The relationship between mental health status and longevity was examined in an archival prospective cohort study (N?=?1,103) derived from work begun by Lewis Terman in the 1920s. Degree of psychological maladjustment, cumulatively rated by Terman and his colleagues as of 1950, was found to be related to higher risk of all-cause mortality over a 4-decade follow-up period. The differences among causes of death were nonsignificant, but there was some indication that mental health problems were more strongly related to deaths from injury and cardiovascular disease. The overall relationship was significant for men but weaker for women. The effect was not substantially mediated by alcohol consumption, obesity, or cigarette smoking. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Conflict between the sexes: Strategic interference and the evocation of anger and upset.

Advances an evolution-based model of strategic conflict between men and women. Conflict is predicted to occur whenever the reproductive strategy adopted by one sex interferes with that adopted by the opposite sex. Three empirical studies tested hypotheses based on this model. Study 1 (N?=?528) examined sex differences in sources of anger and upset (e.g., about sexual aggressiveness or withholding) among 2 samples of Ss differing in age and marital status. Study 2 (N?=?60) assessed the perceived magnitude of upset each sex would experience when confronted by each source. Study 3 (N?=?214) tested predictions within married couples about sex differences in sources of marital and sexual dissatisfaction. These studies provide modest support for the strategic conflict model and implicate the negative emotions of anger and upset as proximate mechanisms that alert men and women to strategic interference. The diversity of upset elicitors discovered here, such as being condescending, possessive, neglecting, abusive, inconsiderate, moody, and self-centered, point to the limitations of this evolutionary model and the need to develop more comprehensive models of conflict between the sexes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)