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The role of executive functions in everyday life can hardly be overstated. Its influence ranges from pathological behaviour on the negative side, to quality of life on the positive side of human functioning. Assessment of executive functions includes both objective and subjective measures, which include self-report measures. Most self-report measures, however, were developed for use in clinical populations. The Executive Functioning Inventory (EFI) is a brief self-report measure developed for use in healthy populations. Psychometrically, the measure appears to function reasonably well in American and European populations; however, its internal structure is yet to be examined in South Africa. The aim of this study was to evaluate the internal consistency reliability, item functioning and factor structure of the EFI in this context. The data ( n = 1904) were collected amongst students at a large urban university of the Gauteng province of South Africa. McDonald’s omega reliability estimates were mostly satisfactory with some exceptions, ranging between 0.59 and 0.76. A five-factor model consistent with a multidimensional view of executive functioning found modest support in this data. With the exception of two items, item response theory analysis further found the items of the EFI to function well on their respective subscales. Overall, the results were largely consistent with previous findings, providing initial support for its use in South Africa, especially, for research studies seeking a brief index of executive functioning or as part of a comprehensive assessment of executive functioning, if required.

In recent years, there has been a crisis of confidence in many empirical fields including psychology, regarding the reproducibility of scientific findings. Among several causes thought to have contributed to this situation, the inferential basis of traditional, or so-called frequentist statistics, is arguably chief among them. Of particular concern is null hypothesis significance testing (NHST), which inadvertently became the de facto basis of scientific inference in the frequentist paradigm. The objective of this paper is to describe some of the most prominent issues plaguing frequentist inference, including NHST. In addition, some Bayesian benefits are introduced to show that it offers solutions to several problems inherent in frequentist statistics. The overall aim is to provide a non-threatening, conceptual overview of these concerns. The hope is that this will facilitate greater awareness and understanding of the need to address these matters in empirical psychology.

The presence of positive affect (PA) and negative affect (NA) is important to adolescent developmental trajectories and their well-being. While the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule for Children (PANAS-S) has been widely implemented to measure affect among adolescents, measurement equivalence of the scale has rarely been addressed. This study investigated measurement equivalence of the PANAS-C across gender and ethnicity (Black and White) among a sample of South African adolescents. It also examined group differences in PA and NA between males and females, and between the two ethnic groups. Data was available for 1062 adolescents with a mean age of 15.9 years. Results from a uniform differential item analysis suggested that the items on both the PA and NA subscales function largely similarly across gender and ethnicity. Using Bayesian analyses to investigate group differences in PA and NA, boys scored higher on positive affect, and girls higher on negative affect. There were no differences in either PA or NA among Black and White adolescents. The significance and implications of the results are discussed.

Solitude during adolescence is a potentially double edged sword. Involuntary (non-self-determined solitude) is associated with loneliness, which is known to predict many forms of psychological ill-being. In contrast, freely chosen (self-determined solitude) is associated with healthy developmental outcomes. It is possible that cultural attitudes towards solitude could influence the way adolescents think about and engage in solitude. The present study examined whether South African adolescents from individualist and collectivist cultures differ in their motivations for solitude, using the Motivation for Solitude Scale (MSS-SF). Respondents included 426 adolescents from collectivist and 266 from individualist cultures, between 14 and 18 years of age (mean age = 15.7). For valid cross-cultural comparisons, measurement equivalence was established using invariance and differential item functioning analysis. Results for the measurement invariance analysis (MI) marginally failed to support scalar invariance. Given criticism that MI is overly restrictive, Rasch analysis was used to test for uniform DIF, which supported invariance. Next, Bayesian analysis was used to investigate group differences. There was no difference between the cultural groups for non-self-determined solitude, but, adolescents from individualist cultures were less likely to engage in self-determined solitude. Results support the cross-cultural application of the MSS-SF, and point to a possible cultural bias against self-determined solitude in individualist cultures, despite its potential benefits.

With expanding interest in the role of solitude in healthy psychological development during adolescence, there is a need for psychometrically sound solitude measures. The aim of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Motivation for Solitude Scale–Short Form by evaluating its internal consistency, factor structure, and convergent and discriminant validity using a group of South African adolescents ( n = 818). Results revealed satisfactory internal consistency for each of the two subscales, as well as good convergent and discriminant validity. Confirmatory factor analysis supported a two-factor higher order model as providing the best fit. The Motivation for Solitude Scale–Short Form seems to be a valid measure of motivation for solitude among South African adolescents and provides an avenue for further research on the role of solitude in adolescent well-being.

Personality-based integrity tests are used in selection procedures to reduce the chance of hiring employees who are likely to engage in counterproductive work behaviour. This study reports the internal psychometric properties of a personality-based measure developed for this purpose. Data collected from 1353 working adults were used to investigate the internal consistency reliability and to examine construct validity with confirmatory factor analysis and Rasch analysis. Results showed that the reliability estimates for all the scales of the assessment were satisfactory. For the confirmatory factor analysis, inspection of the incremental (comparative fit index and Tucker–Lewis index) and absolute (root mean square error of approximation) goodness-of-fit values found strong support for the construct validity of all the scales. Infit statistics from Rasch analysis provided further support for construct validity, with items from all the scales fitting the Rasch model. The confirmatory and Rasch analysis demonstrated that unidimensional, coherent, and meaningful latent constructs are being measured on the Work-related Risk and Integrity Scale. Overall, results found excellent support for the internal psychometric properties of the instrument in a culturally diverse context.

This study investigated the measurement invariance of the Emotional Quotient Inventory 2.0 across gender and ethnic groups in South Africa. The sample consisted of 1 144 working adults (female = 49.8%. black = 36.2%, white = 29.8%; other = 34%; age range = 18 to 74 years). Multiple group factor analysis was conducted to test for configural, metric, and scalar invariance. Results suggest that the assessment is largely invariant at configural and metric levels across gender and ethnic groups. At scalar level, full invariance was achieved for ten of the fifteen scales across gender and one scale across ethnicity. Partial scalar models were explored for all other scales. Overall, the evidence seems to suggest that the scores from the Emotional Quotient Inventory 2.0 scales had similar meanings for different gender and ethnic groups. However, for a few scales across gender, and more so for ethnicity, it seems that participant responses might also be influenced by factors other than the underlying latent constr...

Mixed model emotional intelligence and trait measures of personality have been shown to be substantially correlated in the research literature. At the same time, mixed model EI seems to offer good incremental validity over and above personality. Previous research has used correlation studies and joint factor analysis to examine the relationship between EI and personality and found that EI loaded as a separate construct in personality factor space. Owing to the possibility of method artefact when using joint factor analysis across two variable sets, this study explored the EI-personality relationship by means of interbattery factor analyses. Two trait personality questionnaires, the Hogan Personality Inventory and the Work Personality Index, were used along with the Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i) as a measure of emotional intelligence. Two independent samples were used, each made up of secondary data collected from respondents (n = 388; n = 615) who completed the assessments for selection or development purposes. Some similar factors emerged in both analyses, pointing to three robust areas of overlap between mixed model EI and personality: (1) behaviours related to internal constraint, (2) interpersonal functioning, and (3) components related to extraverted behaviour. The results of this study facilitate our understanding of the relationship between mixed model EI and personality. They also provide more clarity on the EQ-i’s theoretical base in relation to mainstream personality research.