scholarly journals Assessing Domain Specificity in the Measurement of Mathematics Calculation Anxiety

2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Thomas E. Hunt ◽  
Ovidiu Bagdasar ◽  
David Sheffield ◽  
Malcolm B. Schofield

An online, cross-sectional approach was taken, including an opportunity sample of 160 undergraduate students from a university in the Midlands, UK. Exploratory factor analysis indicated a parsimonious, four-factor solution: abstract maths anxiety, statistics probability anxiety, statistics calculation anxiety, and numerical calculation anxiety. The results support previous evidence for the existence of a separate “numerical anxiety” or “arithmetic computation” anxiety component of maths anxiety and also support the existence of anxiety that is specific to more abstract maths. This is the first study to consider the multidimensionality of maths anxiety at the level of the calculation type. The 26-item Maths Calculation Anxiety Scale appears to be a useful measurement tool in the context of maths calculation specifically.

2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (3) ◽  
pp. 127-133 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura K. Johnson ◽  
Rachel A. Plouffe ◽  
Donald H. Saklofske

Abstract. The Dark Triad is a constellation of three antisocial personality traits: Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy. Recently, researchers have introduced a “Dark Tetrad” that includes subclinical sadism, although others suggest considerable overlap between psychopathy and sadism. To clarify the position of sadism within the Dark Triad, an online study was conducted with 615 university students. Exploratory factor analysis revealed that a six-factor solution fit the data best, representing Machiavellianism, psychopathy, physical sadism, verbal sadism, narcissism, and vicarious sadism. Furthermore, convergent validity was supported through sadism’s correlations with the HEXACO personality traits. The results support sadism’s inclusion within the Dark Tetrad as a unique construct but with some conceptual overlap with psychopathy.


Author(s):  
Kullanun Sripongpun ◽  
Nattanan Saksamrit ◽  
Watcharapong Intarawong ◽  
Pattama Suriyakul Na Ayudhya

Objective - This study aims to extend the brand personality concept by applying this concept to the organization, i.e., the university. Methodology/Technique – A questionnaire was designed based on Aaker (1997)’s 5 dimensions of brand personality scale to collect the data. 400 Thai undergraduate students of Kasetsart University Chalermphrakiat Sakon Nakhon Province Campus participated in this study. Participants were first informed of the study description and instructed to think of a university as if it were a person and to rate on a five-point scale (1 = not at all descriptive, 5 = extremely descriptive). In the data analysis, descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation) and exploratory factor analysis (EFA) were used. Finding – The results from the exploratory factor analysis (EFA) with a varimax rotation showed 5 factors of university personality. Factor 1 represents competence dimension having 10 items (successful, leader, technical, corporate, cool, hardworking, secure, spirited, confident and reliable). Factor 2 represents sophistication dimension which had 4 items (glamorous, good looking, smooth and upper class). Factor 3 represents ruggedness dimension which had 5 items (western, tough, masculine, rugged and outdoorsy). Factor 4 represents sincerity dimension which had 2 items (honest and sincere). The last factor was excitement dimension which had only 1 item, imaginative. Furthermore, according to student perspective, the majority of university personality dimensions of Kasetsart University Chalermphrakiat Sakon Nakhon Province Campus was ruggedness dimension. Novelty – Research examining the dimensions of organization personality is still scant. To fill the gap, the current study was conducted to demonstrate how the brand personality concept was applicable when the organization was viewed as a brand. Therefore, it is a preliminary step toward such direction to extend and apply the brand personality concept to a new different area. Type of Paper: Empirical. JEL Classification: M10, M19. Keywords: University Personality; University Characteristics; Personality Traits; Brand Personality Concept. Reference to this paper should be made as follows: Sripongpun, K; Saksamrit, N; Intarawong, W; Ayudhya, P.S.N. (2021). Investigating University Characteristics on Personality Traits, GATR Global J. Bus. Soc. Sci. Review, 9(1): 58 – 64. https://doi.org/10.35609/gjbssr.2021.9.1(7)


2014 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-45 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolyn S. Huffman ◽  
Kristen Swanson ◽  
Mary R. Lynn

Background and Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine a factor structure for the Impact of Miscarriage Scale (IMS). The 24 items comprising the IMS were originally derived from a phenomenological study of miscarriage in women. Initial psychometric properties were established based on a sample of 188 women (Swanson, 1999a). Method: Data from 341 couples were subjected to confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and exploratory factor analysis (EFA). Results: CFA did not confirm the original structure. EFA explained 57% of the variance through an 18-item, 4-factor structure: isolation and guilt, loss of baby, devastating event, and adjustment. Except for the Adjustment subscale, Cronbach’s alpha coefficients were ≥.78. Conclusion: Although a 3-factor solution is most defensible, with further refinement and additional items, the 4th factor (adjustment) may warrant retention.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (14) ◽  
pp. 5816 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hyo Jung Kim ◽  
Hyunmin Lee ◽  
Hyehyun Hong

According to the psychological reactance theory, psychological reactance is strongly associated with many adverse outcomes of health promotion messages. This is particularly pertinent when health messages are targeting young adults, as they resist freedom-threatening messages compared to other age groups. However, previous reactance measures either relied on the open-ended thought-listing procedure, or incorporated both antecedents as well as consequences of reactance and state reactance. This study aimed to develop and validate a comprehensive scale to measure the state of psychological reactance specifically toward health promotion messages. To this end, this study was situated in the context of an anti-binge drinking intervention targeting college students. A cross-sectional survey was conducted with 203 Singaporean undergraduate students. The dataset was analyzed by exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and item analysis. The final 27 items were loaded on eight factors (anger, exaggeration, design derogation, authoritative tone, ineffectiveness, know-it-all attitude, jadedness, and source motive) that accounted for 78.53% of the variance. Each factor showed satisfactory reliability and validity (discriminant, convergent, and predictive). This study specified cognitive reactions by multiple dimensions and examined how they are intertwined with the affective dimension, which is represented by anger. The scale proposed herein will help researchers and practitioners develop sustainable health interventions.


2010 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 99-111 ◽  
Author(s):  
Justine J. Reel ◽  
Sonya SooHoo ◽  
Trent A. Petrie ◽  
Christy Greenleaf ◽  
Jennifer E. Carter

Previous research with female athletes has yielded equivocal findings when comparing disordered eating rates to nonathlete populations, but the rates differ for athletes in leanness and nonleanness sports (Sherman & Thompson, 2009). The purpose of the current study was to develop a measure to assess sport-specific weight pressures for female athletes. Secondly, this study identified frequencies of weight, size, and appearance pressures across sports. Participants (N =204) were female Division I athletes from three universities who represented 17 sports. Exploratory factor analysis yielded a 4-factor solution for the 16-item Weight Pressures in Sport for Females (WPS-F) scale with strong internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha of 0.90). The most frequently reported pressures among female college athletes were teammates (36.8%), uniform (34.3%), and coach (33.8%). These findings are discussed in comparison with previous research along with clinical and research implications for using the WPS-F in sport psychology settings.


Author(s):  
Andréia Cascaes Cruz ◽  
Margareth Angelo ◽  
Bernardo Pereira dos Santos

Abstract OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to develop and test the psychometric properties of the Self-efficacy Scale for the Establishment of Good Relationships with Families in Neonatal and Pediatric Hospital Settings. METHOD Methodological study grounded on self-efficacy theory was conducted in three phases: conceptual and operational definition (review of the literature and interviews with the target population), content validity (opinion of five experts e three clinical nurses), and exploratory factor analysis and internal consistency reliability (cross-sectional survey with a valid sample of 194 nurses). RESULTS A ten-point Likert scale with 40-item was designed and one item was excluded after review by experts. Three factors emerged from the exploratory factor analysis. The Cronbach's alpha for all items was 0.983 with item-total correlations in the range 0.657 to 0.847. Cronbach's alpha value if item deleted were less than or equal to 0.983. CONCLUSION The final version of the scale demonstrated psychometric adequacy. It is a useful tool to be administered in the clinical, educational and research nursing fields to measure nurses’ self-efficacy beliefs concerning the establishment of good relationships with families.


2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arndt Büssing ◽  
Friedrich Edelhäuser ◽  
Annette Weisskircher ◽  
Judith M. Fouladbakhsh ◽  
Peter Heusser

Several mind body medicine interventions require an active participation of the practitioners. We intended to develop a questionnaire to operationalize and measure the “inner correspondence” of individuals practicing Yoga or Eurythmy Therapy. In an anonymous cross-sectional study we enrolled 501 individuals (61% yoga). Exploratory factor analysis (study 1) of the 12-item instrument (Cronbach's ) pointed to a 3-factor solution, with one major scale and good internal consistency () and two minor scales with weak internal consistency. To improve the quality of the main scale, we added 8 new items which were tested in a sample of 135 individuals (study 2: 71% Yoga). Factor analysis confirmed a 12-item single factor (), that is,Inner Correspondence/Peaceful Harmony with Practices(ICPH). The scale correlated strongly with mindfulness (FMI; ), moderately with life and patient satisfaction (BMLSS;rbetween .32 and .43), and weakly negative with symptom score (VAS; ). In conclusion, the scale ICPH was confirmed as a relevant tool to measure the inner correspondence and feelings of peacefulness with practices. It can be used in clinical studies to assess the efficacy of mind-body practices involving physical movements.


Author(s):  
Jae-Wook Hwang

The purpose of this study was to develop a measurement tool for the interaction between parents and coaches of middle and high school golfers, and to verify its validity. A total of 563 parents participated in the study. Based on the results of preliminary item production, item analysis, reliability analysis, exploratory factor analysis, identification factor analysis, job uniformity analysis, and potential mean comparison analysis, the initial 70 items were constructed according to the conceptualization of parent–coach interactions. The first and second item reduction processes and preliminary surveys were conducted through expert meetings to produce the final 40 items of parent–coach interactions. After eliminating 20 items through question analysis, reliability analysis, and exploratory factor analysis, the final three factors of parent–coach interaction were extracted, and the conformity index for the middle and high school golfers’ parent-to-coach interaction tool was checked. Then, to ensure the external validity of the developed parent–coach interaction measurement tool, a construct equivalence analysis was conducted to demonstrate that the tool can be applied equally to parents and coaches. In summary, the tools for measuring the interaction between the middle and high school golfers’ parents and coaches were developed in 20 questions, three factors for communication, qualification, and support, and it was confirmed that the developed measuring tools could all be applied equally through a latent mean analysis. Parents and coaches are key variables that can affect a player’s performance; thus parents and coaches’ interaction measuring tools can be provide positive information not only for golfers but also for players of various other sports.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seyedeh Somayeh Kazemi ◽  
Sedigheh-Sadat Tavafian ◽  
Alireza Hidarnia ◽  
Ali Montazeri

Abstract Background: Occupational back pain is the most prevalent health problem among nurses and needs to be assessed by a valid and multi-factorial questionnaire. The purpose of the present study was to design and develop an instrument based on the PRECEDE-PROCEED model for assessing job-related behaviors that cause low back pain. Methods: First an item pool of 49 items was generated. Then, content and face validity was carried out. Consequently, a cross-sectional study was conducted in Mazandaran, Iran. The questionnaire was distributed among a sample of nurses working in hospitals affiliated to Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences. Exploratory factor analysis was used to determine the factor structure of the questionnaire. The Cronbach’s alpha was estimated to assess the reliability and the intraclass correlation coefficient was calculated to examine stability. Results: In all 155 nurses participated in the study. The mean age of respondents was 34.1 (SD = 7.66) years, and 83.2% were female. Six factors with 30 items emerged from the exploratory factor analysis: knowledge, attitude, self-efficacy, reinforcing factors, enabling factors and behavior that jointly accounted for %66.5 of behavior change variance observed. The Cronbach’s alpha coefficient showed excellent internal consistency (alpha=0.92). The intraclass correlation coefficient with 2-weeks interval also indicated that the questionnaire has satisfactory stability (ICC = 0.97). Conclusions: The findings showed that the Occupational Back Pain Prevention Behavior Questionnaire is a reliable and valid instrument for measuring occupational back pain and prevention behaviors among nurses. Keywords: Occupational Back Pain, Prevention behaviors, Psychometric evaluation, PRECEDE-PROCEED model, Nurse


2006 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 86-94 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa A. Guion ◽  
Blanca F. Rivera

This article presents findings from the statistical test of an instrument designed to measure youth’s perceptions of the life skills that were improved as a result of their participation in 4-H Clubs. The questionnaire was administered to 126 4-H club members in Florida. The 19-item self-rating Life Skills Improvement Scale was examined for face and content validity. The results were also submitted for exploratory factor analysis and internal consistency testing. The factor analysis yielded a four-factor solution to the 19-item scale, which accounted for 62.6% of the variance in the scale. The Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficient for the 19 items was 0.88. The article also discusses implications and future use of the instrument, as well as recommendations for further study.


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