TY - JOUR
T1 - The Construct, Convergent and Divergent Validity, and Reliability of Three Optimism Scales among North American University Students
AU - Garcia Cadena, Cirilo H.
AU - Diaz, Héctor L.
AU - Caycho-Rodríguez, Tomas
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2020.
PY - 2021/6
Y1 - 2021/6
N2 - The primary objective of this study is to compare the construct, convergent and divergent validity and the reliability of three optimism scales. The study relied on a nonprobability sample of 100 social work students at Western Michigan University in the United States (Seventy-nine percent of the sample were female, and 21% were male). The sample’s mean age was 26.35 years, SD = 7.70. Sixty-nine percent (69%) of the respondents self-identified as White, and 31% self-identified as African American, Hispanic/Latino, multiethnic, Native American or Asian American. The study used confirmatory factor and multiple regression analyses (CFA and MRA). The findings show that the Life Orientation Test-Revised (LOT-R) and the Personal Optimism Scale (POS) were supported by three indicators of goodness of fit, while the Brief Interactive Optimism Scale-Garcia (BIOS-G) was supported by eight. The LOT-R showed no acceptable internal consistency indicators, but the POS and the BIOS-G showed several good internal consistency indicators. Correlations of all of these scales with the Physical Well-being Scale-Garcia (PWS-G) ranged from r (100) =.303, p =.002 to r (100) =.439, p =.000. The three scales had divergent validity because their scores did not differ by gender (LOT-R: t(100) = −.885, p =.383; POS: t(100) = −.263, p =.794; BIOS-G: t(100) = −.840, p =.407). The findings suggest the advisability of recommending the BIOS-G, which is short and easy to use and understand.
AB - The primary objective of this study is to compare the construct, convergent and divergent validity and the reliability of three optimism scales. The study relied on a nonprobability sample of 100 social work students at Western Michigan University in the United States (Seventy-nine percent of the sample were female, and 21% were male). The sample’s mean age was 26.35 years, SD = 7.70. Sixty-nine percent (69%) of the respondents self-identified as White, and 31% self-identified as African American, Hispanic/Latino, multiethnic, Native American or Asian American. The study used confirmatory factor and multiple regression analyses (CFA and MRA). The findings show that the Life Orientation Test-Revised (LOT-R) and the Personal Optimism Scale (POS) were supported by three indicators of goodness of fit, while the Brief Interactive Optimism Scale-Garcia (BIOS-G) was supported by eight. The LOT-R showed no acceptable internal consistency indicators, but the POS and the BIOS-G showed several good internal consistency indicators. Correlations of all of these scales with the Physical Well-being Scale-Garcia (PWS-G) ranged from r (100) =.303, p =.002 to r (100) =.439, p =.000. The three scales had divergent validity because their scores did not differ by gender (LOT-R: t(100) = −.885, p =.383; POS: t(100) = −.263, p =.794; BIOS-G: t(100) = −.840, p =.407). The findings suggest the advisability of recommending the BIOS-G, which is short and easy to use and understand.
KW - American university students
KW - Reliability
KW - construct validity
KW - convergent validity
KW - divergent validity
KW - three optimism scales
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85087029241&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1177/0033294120933144
DO - 10.1177/0033294120933144
M3 - Artículo
C2 - 32576093
AN - SCOPUS:85087029241
SN - 0033-2941
VL - 124
SP - 1412
EP - 1430
JO - Psychological Reports
JF - Psychological Reports
IS - 3
ER -