Is the meaning of subjective well-being similar in Latin American countries? A cross-cultural measurement invariance study of the WHO-5 well-being index during the COVID-19 pandemic

"Background: There is an urgent need to assess changes in well-being on a multinational scale during the COVID-19 pandemic, thus culturally valid scales must be available. Methods: With this in mind, this study examined the invariance of the WHO well-being index (WHO-5) among a sample of 5183 people from 12 Latin Americans countries (Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay). Results: The results of the present study indicate that the WHO-5 is strictly invariant across samples from different Latin American countries. Furthermore, the results of the IRT analysis indicate that all items of the WHO-5 were highly discriminative and that the difficulty required to respond to each of the five items is ascending. Additionally, the results indicated the presence of moderate and small size differences in subjective well-being among most countries. Conclusion: The WHO-5 is useful for assessing subjective well-being in 12 Latin American countries during the COVID-19 pandemic, since the differences between scores can be attributed to differences in well-being and not in other characteristics of the scale.

What Is the Support for Conspiracy Beliefs About COVID-19 Vaccines in Latin America? A Prospective Exploratory Study in 13 Countries

Conspiracy theories about COVID-19 began to emerge immediately after the first news about the disease and threaten to prolong the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic by limiting people’s willingness of receiving a life-saving vaccine. In this context, this study aimed to explore the variation of conspiracy beliefs regarding COVID-19 and the vaccine against it in 5779 people living in 13 Latin American countries (Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela) according to sociodemographic variables such as gender, age, educational level and source of information about COVID-19. The study was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic between September 15 and October 25, 2021. The Spanish-language COVID-19 Vaccine Conspiracy Beliefs Scale (ECCV-COVID) and a sociodemographic survey were used. The results indicate that, in most countries, women, people with a lower educational level and those who receive information about the vaccine and COVID-19 from family/friends are more supportive of conspiracy ideas regarding the COVID-19 vaccine. In the case of age, the results vary by country. The analysis of the responses to each of the questions of the ECCV-COVID reveals that, in general, the countries evaluated are mostly in some degree of disagreement or indecision regarding conspiratorial beliefs about COVID-19 vaccines. The findings could help open further study which could support prevention and treatment efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic

Design and Cross-Cultural Invariance of the COVID-19 Vaccine Conspiracy Beliefs Scale (COVID-VCBS) in 13 Latin American Countries

"Aims: Over the past 2 years, the vaccine conspiracy beliefs construct has been used in a number of different studies. These publications have assessed the determinants and outcomes of vaccine conspiracy beliefs using, in some cases, pooled data from different countries, and compared the results across these contexts. However, studies often do not consider measurement invariance as a necessary requirement for comparative analyses. Therefore, the aim of this study was to develop and evaluate the crosscultural MI of the COVID-19 Vaccine Conspiracy Beliefs Scale (COVID-VCBS) in 12 Latin American countries. Methods: Confirmatory factor analysis, item response theory analysis and alignment method were applied to test measurement invariance in a large number of groups. Results: The COVID-VCBS showed robust psychometric properties and measurement invariance for both factor loadings and crosstabs. Also, a higher level of acceptance of conspiracy beliefs about vaccines is necessary to respond to higher response categories. Similarly, greater acceptance of conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 vaccines was related to a lower intention to be vaccinated. Conclusion: The results allow for improved understanding of conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 vaccines in the countries assessed; furthermore, they provide researchers and practitioners with an invariant measure that they can use in cross-cultural studies in Latin America. However, further studies are needed to test invariance in other countries, with the goal of developing a truly international measure of conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 vaccines.

Network analysis of the relationships between conspiracy beliefs towards COVID-19 vaccine and symptoms of fear of COVID-19 in a sample of latin american countries

The present study examined how conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 vaccines specifically relate to symptoms of fear of COVID-19 in a sample of four South American countries. A total of 1785 people from Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru participated, responding to a sociodemographic survey, the Fear of COVID-19 scale (FCV-19 S) and the Vaccine Conspiracy Beliefs Scale-COVID-19 (VCBS-COVID-19). Network analysis identified the most important symptoms of fear and conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 vaccines (nodes) and the associations between them (edges). In addition, the robustness of the network of these indicators of centrality and the possible differences in the structure and connectivity of the networks between the four countries were evaluated. The results suggest that the nodes with the highest centrality were items 2 and 5 of the FCV-19 S and item 2 of the VCBS-COVID-19. Likewise, item 6 is the belief that most predicts conspiracy beliefs about vaccines against COVID-19; while item 6 was the symptom that most predicts fear of COVID-19. The findings strongly support cross-cultural similarities in the networks across the four countries rather than differences. Although it was expected that a higher presence of symptoms of fear of COVID-19 may lead people to compensate for their fear by believing in conspiratorial ideas about vaccines and, consequently, rejecting the COVID-19 vaccine, the results do not clearly show this relationship. This could lead other researchers to generate evidence to explain the differences between Latin American countries and countries in other contexts in terms of vaccination rates. This evidence could be useful to develop policies favoring vaccination against COVID-19 that are more contextualized to the Latin American region, characterized by social instability and economic recession during the pandemic

Cross-cultural validation of the new version of the Coronavirus Anxiety Scale in twelve Latin American countries

The Coronavirus Anxiety Scale (CAS) was recently developed to assess dysfunctional anxiety related to COVID-19. Although different studies reported that the CAS is psychometrically sound, it is unclear whether it is invariant across countries. Therefore, the present study aimed to examine the measurement invariance of the CAS in twelve Latin American countries (Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay). A total of 5196 people participated, with a mean age of 34.06 (SD = 26.54). Multigroup confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to examine the measurement invariance of the CAS across countries and gender. Additionally, the graded response model (GRM) was used to provide a global representation of the representativeness of the scale with respect to the COVID19 dysfunctional anxiety construct. The unidimensional structure of the five-item CAS was not confirmed in all countries. Therefore, it was suggested that a four-item model of the CAS (CAS-4) provides a better fit across the twelve countries and reliable scores. Multigroup CFA showed that the CAS-4 exhibits scalar invariance across all twelve countries and all genders. In addition, the CAS-4 items are more informative at average and high levels of COVID-19 dysfunctional anxiety than at lower levels. According to the results, the CAS-4 is an instrument with strong cross-cultural validity and is suitable for cross-cultural comparisons of COVID-19 dysfunctional anxiety symptoms in the general population of the twelve Latin American countries evaluated

Network analysis of the relationships between conspiracy beliefs towards COVID-19 vaccine and symptoms of fear of COVID-19 in a sample of latin american countries

"The present study examined how conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 vaccines specifcally relate to symptoms of fear of COVID-19 in a sample of four South American countries. A total of 1785 people from Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru participated, responding to a sociodemographic survey, the Fear of COVID-19 scale (FCV-19 S) and the Vaccine Conspiracy Beliefs Scale-COVID-19 (VCBS-COVID-19). Network analysis identifed the most important symptoms of fear and conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 vaccines (nodes) and the associations between them (edges). In addition, the robustness of the network of these indicators of centrality and the possible diferences in the structure and connectivity of the networks between the four countries were evaluated. The results suggest that the nodes with the highest centrality were items 2 and 5 of the FCV-19 S and item 2 of the VCBS-COVID-19. Likewise, item 6 is the belief that most predicts conspiracy beliefs about vaccines against COVID-19; while item 6 was the symptom that most predicts fear of COVID-19. The fndings strongly support cross-cultural similarities in the networks across the four countries rather than diferences. Although it was expected that a higher presence of symptoms of fear of COVID-19 may lead people to compensate for their fear by believing in conspiratorial ideas about vaccines and, consequently, rejecting the COVID-19 vaccine, the results do not clearly show this relationship. This could lead other researchers to generate evidence to explain the diferences between Latin American countries and countries in other contexts in terms of vaccination rates. This evidence could be useful to develop policies favoring vaccination against COVID-19 that are more contextualized to the Latin American region, characterized by social instability and economic recession during the pandemic.

COVID-19 anxiety, psychological well-being and preventive behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic in Latin America and the Caribbean: relationships and explanatory model

This study assesses the relationship between COVID-19 anxiety and subjective well-being in terms of the mediating role of COVID-19 preventive behaviors. Additionally, the contribution of sociodemographic factors (sex and age) and risk perception on COVID-19 anxiety and its potential measurement invariance was tested in 5655 participants from 12 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. A mixture of both latent and observable variables were analyzed using a system of structural equations. The Coronavirus Anxiety Scale (CAS), Preventive COVID-19 Infection Behaviors Scale (PCIBS) and single-item measures were used to assess the perceived probability of death, perceived severity and concern about transmitting COVID-19. The results indicated that there is a significant and relevant direct effect of COVID-19 anxiety on participants' well-being. Furthermore, COVID-19 anxiety significantly predicted both preventive behavior (β =.29, p <.01) and well-being (β = –.32, p <.01). The effects of COVID anxiety and preventive behavior explained 9.8% of the variance in well-being (R-square =.098); whereas, 8.4% of the variance in preventive behavior was associated with COVID anxiety (R-square =.084). Likewise, perceived likelihood of death from COVID, perceived severity of COVID, and concerns about COVID transmission were positively related to anxiety. Age was negatively related to anxiety, with men being less anxious than women. The results are invariant by country, i.e., the broad relationships found in the combined sample are also present in each individual country. The findings indicate that, although the exact relationships between variables may vary between countries, there are enough similarities to provide useful information about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in each of the countries included in the study

What is the support for conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 vaccines in Latin America? A prospective exploratory study in 13 Countries

Las teorías de conspiración sobre el COVID-19 comenzaron a surgir inmediatamente después de las primeras noticias sobre la enfermedad y amenazan con prolongar el impacto negativo de la pandemia de COVID-19 al limitar la disposición de las personas a recibir una vacuna que salve vidas. En este contexto, este estudio tuvo como objetivo explorar la variación de las creencias conspirativas sobre el COVID-19 y la vacuna contra él en 5779 personas que viven en 13 países de América Latina (Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, México, Paraguay, Perú, Uruguay y Venezuela) según variables sociodemográficas como género, edad, nivel educativo y fuente de información sobre COVID-19. El estudio se realizó durante la pandemia de COVID-19 entre el 15 de septiembre y el 25 de octubre de 2021. Se utilizó la Escala de Creencias de Conspiración sobre la Vacuna contra el COVID-19 en español (ECCV-COVID) y una encuesta sociodemográfica. Los resultados indican que, en la mayoría de los países, las mujeres, las personas con menor nivel educativo y quienes reciben información sobre la vacuna y el COVID-19 de familiares/amigos apoyan más las ideas conspirativas respecto a la vacuna contra el COVID-19

Cross-Cultural Validation of a New Version in Spanish of Four Items of the Preventive COVID-19 Infection Behaviors Scale (PCIBS) in Twelve Latin American Countries

The invariance of the Preventive COVID-19 Infection Behaviors Scale (PCIBS) was evaluated in 12 Latin American countries (Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay). A total of 5183 people from the aforementioned countries participated, selected using the snowball sampling method. Measurement invariance was assessed by multigroup confirmatory factor analysis (MG-CFA) and Multi-Group Factor Analysis Alignment (CFA-MIAL). In addition, item characteristics were assessed based on Item Response Theory. The results indicate that the original five-item version of the PCIBS is not adequate; whereas a four-item version of the PCIBS (PCIBS-4) showed a good fit in all countries. Thus, using the MG-CFA method, the PCIBS-4 achieved metric invariance, while the CFA-MIAL method indicated that the PCIBS-4 shows metric and scalar invariance. Likewise, the four items present increasing difficulties and high values in the discrimination parameters. The comparison of means of the PCIBS-4 reported irrelevant differences between countries; however, Mexico and Peru presented the highest frequency of preventive behaviors related to COVID-19. It is concluded that the PCIBS-4 is a unidimensional self-report measure which is reliable and invariant across the twelve participating Latin American countries. It is expected that the findings will be of interest to social and health scientists, as well as those professionals directly involved in public health decision making.Fil: Caicho Rodriguez, Tomás. Universidad Privada del Norte; PerúFil: Vilca, Lindsey W.. Universidad Peruana Unión; PerúFil: Valencia, Pablo D.. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México; MéxicoFil: Carabajal Leon, Carlos. Universidad Privada del Norte; PerúFil: Vivanco Vidal, Andrea. Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas (upc);Fil: Saroli Aranibar, Daniela. Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas (upc);Fil: Reyes Bossio, Mario. Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas (upc);Fil: White, Michael. Universidad Peruana Unión; PerúFil: Rojas Jara, Claudio. Universidad Catolica de Maule; ChileFil: Polanco Carrasco, Roberto. Cuadernos de Neuropsicología; ChileFil: Gallegos de San Vicente, Miguel Omar. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Rosario. Instituto Rosario de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Educación. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Instituto Rosario de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Educación; Argentina. Pontifícia Universidade Católica de Minas Gerais; BrasilFil: Cervigni, Mauricio Alejandro. Universidad Adventista del Plata. Secretaría de Ciencia y Técnica. Centro Interdisciplinario de Investigaciones En Ciencias de la Salud y del Comportamiento.; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Rosario; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Martino, Pablo Luis. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Psicología. Secretaria de Ciencia y Tecnología. Centro de Investigación En Neurociencias de Rosario; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Palacios, Diego Alejandro. Universidad Mariano Gálvez de Guatemala; GuatemalaFil: Moreta Herrera, Rodrigo. Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador; EcuadorFil: Samaniego Pinho, Antonio. Universidad Nacional de Asunción; ParaguayFil: Lobos Rivera, Marlon Elías. Universidad Tecnologica de El Salvador; El SalvadorFil: Ferrari, Ilka Franco. Pontifícia Universidade Católica de Minas Gerais; BrasilFil: Flores Mendoza, Carmen. Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais; BrasilFil: Buschiazzo Figares, Andrés. Instituto Alfred Adler Uruguay; UruguayFil: Puerta Cortéz, Diana Ximena. Universidad de Ibagué; ColombiaFil: Corrales Reyes, Ibraín Enrique. Universidad de Ciencias Médicas de Granma; CubaFil: Calderón, Raymundo. Universidad del Valle de Mexico; MéxicoFil: Pinto Tapia, Bismarck. Universidad Católica Boliviana San Pablo; BoliviaFil: Arias Gallegos, Walter L.. Universidad Católica San Pablo; Per