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Background  A wide range of exploratory methods is available in psychometrics as means of gathering insight on existing data and on the process of establishing the number and nature of an internal structure factor of a test. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and principal component analysis (PCA) remain well-established techniques despite their different theoretical perspectives. Network analysis (NA) has recently gained popularity together with such algorithms as the Next Eigenvalue Sufficiency Test. These analyses link statistics and psychology, but their results tend to vary, leading to an open methodological debate on statistical assumptions of psychometric analyses and the extent to which results that are generated with these analyses align with the theoretical basis that underlies an instrument. The current study uses a previously published data set from the Ages & Stages Questionnaires: Social-Emotional to explore, show, and discuss several exploratory analyses of its internal structure. To a lesser degree, this study furthers the ongoing debate on the interface between theoretical and methodological perspectives in psychometrics. Methods  From a sample of 22,331 sixty-month-old children, 500 participants were randomly selected. Pearson and polychoric correlation matrices were compared and used as inputs in the psychometric analyses. The number of factors was determined via well-known rules of thumb, including the parallel analysis and the Hull method. Multidimensional solutions were rotated via oblique methods. R and Factor software were used, the codes for which are publicly available at https://luisfca.shinyapps.io/psychometrics%5fasq%5fse/. Results  Solutions from one to eight dimensions were suggested. Polychoric correlation overcame Pearson correlation, but nonconvergence issues were detected. The Hull method achieved a unidimensional structure. PCA and EFA achieved similar results. Conversely, six clusters were suggested via NA. Conclusion  The statistical outcomes for determining the factor structure of an assessment diverged, varying from one to eight domains, which allowed for different interpretations of the results. Methodological implications are further discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Short-term memory is a dynamic psychological process that operates within a network in which non-verbal intelligence and attentional domains are connected. However, no consensus has been reached about which process has the greatest effect on this memory ability, which was the main objective of the present study. A sample of 1448 Brazilian participants (mean age = 26.62 years, standard deviation = 9.97 years; 53.9% females) were collectively tested on pen-and-paper standardized and validated measures of selective (ROTAS-C), alternating (ROTAS-A), and divided (ROTAS-D) attention. They also performed the R1 Non-verbal Intelligence Test and a visual short-term memory test (Memória Visual de Curto Prazo [MEMORE] test). The statistical analyses consisted of a data mining procedure, in which exhaustive automatic selection screening was performed. The results were compared with Corrected Akaike Information Criteria. The linear model met the classic assumptions of ordinary least squares and only included main effects of selective attention (standardized β = 0.39) and non-verbal intelligence (standardized β = 0.37) as main predictors (F2,39 = 7.01, p < 0.01, adjusted R2 = 24%). The results are discussed within a cognitive psychology framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Brazilian State-Trait Anxiety Inventory has been widely used to measure state (STAI-S) and trait (STAI-T) components of anxiety. The present work developed and evaluated a short version of the STAI-S and STAI-T in a large sample of Brazilian subjects. The first study selected short-form scales. The second one employed factor analyses to investigate whether each of the two short-form scales presented a well-defined and balanced structure with both anxiety-present and anxiety-absent factors. Results indicated that the STAI-S and STAI-T could be reduced to six items (STAI-S-6 and STAI-T-6, respectively) without sacrificing their psychometric properties. The findings suggest that STAI-S-6 and STAI-T-6 may be employed in situations where time restraints make the use of full-length forms unfeasible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anxiety sensitivity (i.e., fear of arousal-related bodily sensations, including sensations that arise from normal physiological processes, due to the personal belief that these sensations will produce harmful consequences) is an important psychological construct involved in the etiology and maintenance of different anxiety disorders. The present study evaluated the psychometric proprieties and the factor structure of the 18-item Anxiety Sensitivity Index-3 (ASI-3) among 585 Brazilian patients with primary anxiety disorder diagnosis. Results indicated good internal consistency and item-total correlation coefficients. Exploratory factor analyses suggested a hierarchical structure composed of a single higher-order factor and three lower-order factors related to physical, cognitive and social concern. ASI-3 score comparisons across the different anxiety disorder groups indicated that panic disorder patients produced significantly higher overall ASI-3 scores as well as on the physical and social subscales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neuropsychological assessments are often carried out due to mnemonic conditions. In this regard, short-term visual memory (STVM) is a type of memory that involves the temporary storage of visual information. Its evaluation has important clinical utility. The present study aimed to report evidence of the validity of the interpretation of the results obtained by a psychometric standardized test (MEMORE), especially developed to evaluate STVM in the context of clinical neuropsychology and psychological evaluation in general. From a sample composed of 1793 individuals located in the south, southeast and northeast of Brazil, 53.9% (n = 778) women, mean age 26.6 years (SD = 9.9), Psychometric results stated the reliability of the measure (Cronbach's alpha = 0.76; Composite reliability = 0.78, correlation between total value obtained between both applications = 0.81), a sufficiently unidimensional structure (X2(252) = 1255.530, p < 0.01, RMSEA = 0.048 [BC Bootstrap 95% CI = 0.046-0.0484], GFI = 0.860 [BC Bootstrap 95% CI = 0.859 - 0.870], MIREAL = 0.287 [BC Bootstrap 95% CI = 0.259 - 0.299]), and a metric invariance between men and women (2 (24) = 29,677, p = 0.196). No significant difference in performance as a function of gender was found, but a significant interaction between education and age group (F(8,1419) = 2.49, p = 0.01, p = 0.01). It is possible to conclude the psychometric adequacy of MEMORE and provide further evidence to consolidate the association between cognitive measures and sociodemographic effects on memory performance. This study offers a new instrument for use in neuropsychology and psychological assessment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Screening tools in health and education provide quick indicators that anticipate diagnostic evaluation and treatment. Faced with the socio-emotional competences of children, the Ages & Stages Questionnaires: Social-Emotional (ASQ:SE) was used in the population of children enrolled in public pre-schools in the city of Rio de Janeiro during 2011. The objective of this work was to investigate aspects of its validity and reliability. Data from 23,334 children (50.6% boys) being an average age of 5 years old (SD: 3 months) and enrolled in 625 pre-schools were analyzed. After an intensive data analysis, the Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analysis, the results were favorable to the multidimensional model with a social and emotional dimension: 2 (463) = 46363.495, p <0.001; RMSEA = 0.067; CFI = 0.918; TLI = 0.913. Reliability indicators were adequate. The results confirmed validity aspects of the ASQ:SE, thereby verifying its use for children aged 5 years old. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In Brazil, large‐scale governmental programmes have been implemented to evaluate the development of all children who are enrolled in public daycare centres and preschools using the Brazilian Ages and Stages Questionnaires: Social–Emotional (ASQ:SE) as a screening tool. However, in the Brazilian context, there is a lack of studies that have investigated the clinical utility of the ASQ:SE, and only a few studies have partially investigated the psychometric properties of the Brazilian version of this scale. Objectives: The present study had two aims: (a) to develop reference norms for the ASQ:SE to help professionals screen child development and because the psychometric properties of the ASQ:SE have only been partially examined, (b) to confirm its factorial structure within a multidimensional item response theory framework. Methods: The sample size was 54,570 children (53% males, 1–5 years old) who were enrolled in Brazilian public daycare centres and preschools and assessed in 2011. The results allowed the development of reference norms for all age intervals by considering raw scores at the 95th percentile as "monitoring zone" and scores at the 99th percentile as "refer child for further evaluation." Samejima's graded response model was employed, and its fit was checked by the root mean squared error of approximation. Results: The results were ≤0.08, indicating sufficient fit for the two‐factor structure. The raw results were 70 and 99.75 (12 months), 75 and 100 (18 months), 70 and 100 (24 months), 85 and 120 (30 months), 90 and 130 (36 months), 95 and 135 (48 months), and 110 and 150 (60 months) for monitoring zone and to refer the child for further evaluation. Discussion Early identification is the initial stage in this early identification process, thus allowing for referral or intervention. This study may help identify children with developmental delays. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Well-designed screening assessment instruments that can evaluate child development in public daycare centers represent an important resource to help improve the quality of these programs, as an early detection method for early developmental delay. The Ages and Stages Questionnaire, 3rd edition (ASQ-3), comprises a series of 21 questionnaires designed to screen developmental performance in the domains of communication, gross motor skills, fine motor skills, problem solving, and personal–social ability in children aged 2 to 66months. The purpose of the present work was to translate and adapt all of the ASQ-3 questionnaires for use in Brazilian public child daycare centers and to explore their psychometric characteristics with both Classical Test Theory and Rating Scale analyses from the Rasch model family. A total of 18 Ages & Stages Questionnaires — Brazilian translation (ASQ-BR) questionnaires administered at intervals from 6 to 60months of age were analyzed based on primary caregiver evaluations of 45,640 children distributed in 468 public daycare centers in the city of Rio de Janeiro. The results indicated that most of the ASQ-BR questionnaires had adequate internal consistency. Exploratory factor analyses yielded a one-factor solution for each domain of all of the ASQ-BR questionnaires. The only exception was the personal–social domain in some of the questionnaires. Item Response Theory based on Rating Scale analysis (infit and outfit mean squares statistics) indicated that only 44 of 540 items showed misfit problems. In summary, the ASQ-BR questionnaires are psychometrically sound developmental screening instruments that can be easily administered by primary caregivers. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Objective: To present the process of transcultural adaptation of the Richmond Compulsive Buying Scale to Brazilian Portuguese. Methods: For the semantic adaptation step, the scale was translated to Portuguese and then back-translated to English by two professional translators and one psychologist, without any communication between them. The scale was then applied to 20 participants from the general population for language adjustments. For the construct validation step, an exploratory factor analysis was performed, using the scree plot test, principal component analysis for factor extraction, and Varimax rotation. For convergent validity, the correlation matrix was analyzed through Pearson's coefficient. Results: The scale showed easy applicability, satisfactory internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha=.87), and a high correlation with other rating scales for compulsive buying disorder, indicating that it is suitable to be used in the assessment and diagnosis of compulsive buying disorder, as it presents psychometric validity. Conclusion: The Brazilian Portuguese version of the Richmond Compulsive Buying Scale has good validity and reliability [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To present the process of transcu[tura[ adaptation of the Richmond Compulsive Buying Scale to Brazilian Portuguese. Methods: For the semantic adaptation step, the scale was translated to Portuguese and then back-translated to English by two professional translators and one psychologist, without any communication between them. The scale was then applied to 20 participants from the general population for language adjustments. For the construct validation step, an exploratory factor analysis was performed, using the scree plot test, principal component analysis for factor extraction, and Varimax rotation. For convergent validity, the correlation matrix was analyzed through Pearson's coefficient. Results: The scale showed easy applicability, satisfactory internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha=.87), and a high correlation with other rating scales for compulsive buying disorder, indicating that it is suitable to be used in the assessment and diagnosis of compulsive buying disorder, as it presents psychometric validity. Conclusion: The BraziLian Portuguese version of the Richmond Compulsive Buying Scale has good validity and reliability [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]