Development and Validation of the Behavioral Tendencies Questionnaire

At a fundamental level, taxonomy of behavior and behavioral tendencies can be described in terms of approach, avoid, or equivocate (i.e., neither approach nor avoid). While there are numerous theories of personality, temperament, and character, few seem to take advantage of parsimonious taxonomy. The present study sought to implement this taxonomy by creating a questionnaire based on a categorization of behavioral temperaments/tendencies first identified in Buddhist accounts over fifteen hundred years ago. Items were developed using historical and contemporary texts of the behavioral temperaments, described as “Greedy/Faithful”, “Aversive/Discerning”, and “Deluded/Speculative”. To both maintain this categorical typology and benefit from the advantageous properties of forced-choice response format (e.g., reduction of response biases), binary pairwise preferences for items were modeled using Latent Class Analysis (LCA). One sample (n1 = 394) was used to estimate the item parameters, and the second sample (n2 = 504) was used to classify the participants using the established parameters and cross-validate the classification against multiple other measures. The cross-validated measure exhibited good nomothetic span (construct-consistent relationships with related measures) that seemed to corroborate the ideas present in the original Buddhist source documents. The final 13-block questionnaire created from the best performing items (the Behavioral Tendencies Questionnaire or BTQ) is a psychometrically valid questionnaire that is historically consistent, based in behavioral tendencies, and promises practical and clinical utility particularly in settings that teach and study meditation practices such as Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)

Validation of the Comprehensive Feeding Practices Questionnaire with parents of 10-to-12-year-olds

Abstract Background: There is a lack of validated instruments for quantifying feeding behavior among parents of older children and adolescents. The Comprehensive Feeding Practices Questionnaire (CFPQ) is a self-report measure to assess multiple parental feeding practices. The CFPQ is originally designed for use with parents of children ranging in age from about 2 to 8 years. It is previously validated with American and French parents of children within this age range. The aim of the present study was to adapt and test the validity of this measure with parents of older children (10-to-12-year-olds) in a Norwegian setting. Methods: A sample of 963 parents of 10-to-12-year-olds completed a Norwegian, slightly adapted version of the CFPQ. Scale analyses were performed to test the validity of the instrument in our sample. Results: Although a few problematic items and scales were revealed, scale analyses showed that the psychometric properties of the slightly adapted, Norwegian version of the CFPQ were surprisingly similar to those of the original CFPQ. Conclusions: Our results indicated that the CFPQ, with some small modifications, is a valid tool for measuring multiple parental feeding practices with parents of 10-to12-year-olds

Factor structure and factorial invariance of the strengths and difficulties questionnaire among children of prisoners and their parents

Parental imprisonment has been linked to a variety of adverse psychological outcomes for children and adolescents. The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) has been widely used to assess behavioural and emotional difficulties among 7-17 year olds in the general population and more recently has been utilised among samples of children of prisoners. Previous research has variously tested traditional one-, three- and five- factor solutions to the SDQ, and more recently one bifactor solution has been examined. Based on a sample of children of prisoners (N = 724) and their non-imprisoned parent or caregiver (N = 658), the aim of the present study was to simultaneously compare nine alternative factor structures, including previously tested models and alternative bifactor solutions. Tests of factorial invariance and composite reliability were also performed. The five-factor model was found to provide the best fit for the data. Tests of factorial invariance revealed that the five-factor model provided an equally acceptable, but not identical fit, among boys and girls. Composite reliability scores were low for the Conduct Problems and Peer Problems subscales. The utility of the SDQ in measuring psychological functioning in response to parental imprisonment is discussed

Appraisals, perceived dyadic communication, and quality of life over time among couples coping with prostate cancer

PURPOSE: Little research has examined how prostate cancer patients’ and their spouses’ appraisals of illness and quality of life (QOL) interact with one another. This study examined the interdependent relationships between their appraisals of illness and QOL, and if their perceived dyadic communication mediated these relationships. METHODS: We used the Actor-Partner Interdependence Mediation Model (APIMeM) approach to conduct a secondary analysis of longitudinal data from 124 prostate cancer patient-spouse dyads. We examined actor effects (each person’s influence on his/her own outcomes) and partner effects (each person’s influence on his/her partner’s outcomes). Appraisals of illness, perceived dyadic communication, and QOL were measured using Appraisal of Illness scale, Lewis Mutuality and Interpersonal Sensitivity Scale, and Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy general scale, respectively. Analyses controlled for effects of prostate cancer symptoms and demographic factors. RESULTS: Among actor effects, spouses with more negative appraisals at baseline perceived worse dyadic communication 4-months later (p<.05) and worse QOL 8-months later (p<.001). Patients and spouses who perceived more dyadic communication at 4 months had better QOL at 8 months (p<.01). Among partner effects, there was only weak evidence for an association between patient perceived dyadic communication at 4-months and better spouse QOL at 8 months follow-up (p=.05). No mediation effects were found. CONCLUSIONS: Patients’ and spouses’ appraisals of the illness and their dyadic communication were associated with their long-term QOL. Interventions that reduce negative appraisals of illness and promote dyadic communication may improve QOL for both patients with prostate cancer and their spouses