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Item Cross-Cultural Adaptation and Application of the One-Parameter Item Response Model to the Santa Clara Brief Compassion Scale (SCBCS)(Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature, 2025-09-22) Adu P; Popoola T; Iqbal N; Roemer A; Collings S; Aspin C; Medvedev ON; Simpson CR; Medvedev ON; Krägeloh CUObjectives International research has consistently demonstrated the positive impact of compassion towards others on both physical and mental well-being, with significant implications for mindfulness practice. Based on this evidence, we aimed to adapt the Santa Clara Brief Compassion Scale (SCBCS) into German while simultaneously conducting a cross-cultural validation and enhancing its measurement precision using Rasch methodology across samples from Germany, Ghana, India, and New Zealand. Method We applied the unrestricted Partial Credit Model to analyze data from a randomly selected subsample of 500 participants, drawn from a total convenience sample of 1822 individuals recruited from the general populations of Germany, Ghana, India, and New Zealand. Results Our initial analysis of the SCBCS showed significant misfit to the Rasch model (χ2(30) = 58.48, p < 0.001), which was successfully addressed by testlet creation resulting in satisfactory model fit (χ2(24) = 24.80, p = 0.09). This included strict unidimensionality, strong reliability (Person Separation Index = 0.81), and invariance across personal factors, such as country, educational levels, sex, and age. We then developed an algorithm for transforming ordinal scores to interval-level data to enhance the accuracy of the SCBCS. The scale demonstrated sound divergent and convergent validity. Conclusions Our study has validated both the German and English versions of the SCBCS using Rasch methodology. The precision of measuring compassion towards others using the two versions of the SCBCS can be further enhanced by applying the ordinal-to-interval transformation tables developed in this paper.Item Enhancing the Precision of the Self-Compassion Scale Short Form (SCS-SF) with Rasch Methodology(Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature, 2024-10-28) Adu P; Popoola T; Bartholomew E; Iqbal N; Roemer A; Jurcik T; Collings S; Aspin C; Medvedev ON; Simpson CRObjectives: Precise measurement of self-compassion is essential for informing well-being–related policies. Traditional assessment methods have led to inconsistencies in the factor structure of self-compassion scales. We used Rasch methodology to enhance measurement precision and assess the psychometric properties of the Self-Compassion Scale Short Form (SCS-SF), including its invariance across Ghana, Germany, India, and New Zealand. Method: We employed the Partial Credit Rasch model to analyse responses obtained from 1000 individuals randomly selected (i.e. 250 from each country) from a total convenience sample of 1822 recruited from the general populations of Germany, Ghana, India, and New Zealand. Results: The initial identification of local dependency among certain items led to a significant misfitting of the SCS-SF to the Rasch model (χ2 (108) = 260.26, p < 0.001). We addressed this issue by merging locally dependent items, using testlets. The solution with three testlets resulted in optimal fit of the SCS-SF to the Rasch model (χ2 (27) = 23.84, p = 0.64), showing evidence of unidimensionality, strong sample targeting (M = 0.20; SD = 0.72), and good reliability (Person Separation Index = 0.71), including invariance across sociodemographic factors. We then developed ordinal-to-interval conversion tables based on the Rasch model’s person estimates. The SCS-SF showed positive correlations with measures of compassion towards others, optimism, and positive affect, alongside negative associations with psychological distress and negative affect. Conclusions: The current study supports the reliability, as well as the structural, convergent, and external validity of the SCS-SF. By employing the ordinal-to-interval conversion tables published here, the precision of the measure is significantly enhanced, offering a robust tool for investigating self-compassion across different cultures.Item Body appreciation around the world: Measurement invariance of the Body Appreciation Scale-2 (BAS-2) across 65 nations, 40 languages, gender identities, and age.(Elsevier B.V., 2023-08-13) Swami V; Tran US; Stieger S; Aavik T; Ranjbar HA; Adebayo SO; Afhami R; Ahmed O; Aimé A; Akel M; Halbusi HA; Alexias G; Ali KF; Alp-Dal N; Alsalhani AB; Álvares-Solas S; Amaral ACS; Andrianto S; Aspden T; Argyrides M; Aruta JJBR; Atkin S; Ayandele O; Baceviciene M; Bahbouh R; Ballesio A; Barron D; Bellard A; Bender SS; Beydağ KD; Birovljević G; Blackburn M-È; Borja-Alvarez T; Borowiec J; Bozogáňová M; Bratland-Sanda S; Browning MHEM; Brytek-Matera A; Burakova M; Çakır-Koçak Y; Camacho P; Camilleri VE; Cazzato V; Cerea S; Chaiwutikornwanich A; Chaleeraktrakoon T; Chambers T; Chen Q-W; Chen X; Chien C-L; Chobthamkit P; Choompunuch B; Compte EJ; Corrigan J; Cosmas G; Cowden RG; Czepczor-Bernat K; Czub M; da Silva WR; Dadfar M; Dalley SE; Dany L; Datu JAD; Berbert de Carvalho PH; Coelho GLDH; De Jesus AOS; Debbabi SH; Dhakal S; Di Bernardo F; Dimitrova DD; Dion J; Dixson B; Donofrio SM; Drysch M; Du H; Dzhambov AM; El-Jor C; Enea V; Eskin M; Farbod F; Farrugia L; Fian L; Fisher ML; Folwarczny M; Frederick DA; Fuller-Tyszkiewicz M; Furnham A; García AA; Geller S; Ghisi M; Ghorbani A; Martinez MAG; Gradidge S; Graf S; Grano C; Gyene G; Hallit S; Hamdan M; Handelzalts JE; Hanel PHP; Hawks SR; Hekmati I; Helmy M; Hill T; Hina F; Holenweger G; Hřebíčková M; Ijabadeniyi OA; Imam A; İnce B; Irrazabal N; Jankauskiene R; Jiang D-Y; Jiménez-Borja M; Jiménez-Borja V; Johnson EM; Jovanović V; Jović M; Jović M; Junqueira ACP; Kahle L-M; Kantanista A; Karakiraz A; Karkin AN; Kasten E; Khatib S; Khieowan N; Kimong PJ; Kiropoulos L; Knittel J; Kohli N; Koprivnik M; Kospakov A; Król-Zielińska M; Krug I; Kuan G; Kueh YC; Kujan O; Kukić M; Kumar S; Kumar V; Lamba N; Lauri MA; Laus MF; LeBlanc LA; Lee HJ; Lipowska M; Lipowski M; Lombardo C; Lukács A; Maïano C; Malik S; Manjary M; Baldó LM; Martinez-Banfi M; Massar K; Matera C; McAnirlin O; Mebarak MR; Mechri A; Meireles JFF; Mesko N; Mills J; Miyairi M; Modi R; Modrzejewska A; Modrzejewska J; Mulgrew KE; Myers TA; Namatame H; Nassani MZ; Nerini A; Neto F; Neto J; Neves AN; Ng S-K; Nithiya D; O J; Obeid S; Oda-Montecinos C; Olapegba PO; Olonisakin TT; Omar SS; Örlygsdóttir B; Özsoy E; Otterbring T; Pahl S; Panasiti MS; Park Y; Patwary MM; Pethö T; Petrova N; Pietschnig J; Pourmahmoud S; Prabhu VG; Poštuvan V; Prokop P; Ramseyer Winter VL; Razmus M; Ru T; Rupar M; Sahlan RN; Hassan MS; Šalov A; Sapkota S; Sarfo JO; Sawamiya Y; Schaefer K; Schulte-Mecklenbeck M; Seekis V; Selvi K; Sharifi M; Shrivastava A; Siddique RF; Sigurdsson V; Silkane V; Šimunić A; Singh G; Slezáčková A; Sundgot-Borgen C; Ten Hoor G; Tevichapong P; Tipandjan A; Todd J; Togas C; Tonini F; Tovar-Castro JC; Trangsrud LKJ; Tripathi P; Tudorel O; Tylka TL; Uyzbayeva A; Vally Z; Vanags E; Vega LD; Vicente-Arruebarrena A; Vidal-Mollón J; Vilar R; Villegas H; Vintilă M; Wallner C; White MP; Whitebridge S; Windhager S; Wong KY; Yau EK; Yamamiya Y; Yeung VWL; Zanetti MC; Zawisza M; Zeeni N; Zvaríková M; Voracek MThe Body Appreciation Scale-2 (BAS-2) is a widely used measure of a core facet of the positive body image construct. However, extant research concerning measurement invariance of the BAS-2 across a large number of nations remains limited. Here, we utilised the Body Image in Nature (BINS) dataset - with data collected between 2020 and 2022 - to assess measurement invariance of the BAS-2 across 65 nations, 40 languages, gender identities, and age groups. Multi-group confirmatory factor analysis indicated that full scalar invariance was upheld across all nations, languages, gender identities, and age groups, suggesting that the unidimensional BAS-2 model has widespread applicability. There were large differences across nations and languages in latent body appreciation, while differences across gender identities and age groups were negligible-to-small. Additionally, greater body appreciation was significantly associated with higher life satisfaction, being single (versus being married or in a committed relationship), and greater rurality (versus urbanicity). Across a subset of nations where nation-level data were available, greater body appreciation was also significantly associated with greater cultural distance from the United States and greater relative income inequality. These findings suggest that the BAS-2 likely captures a near-universal conceptualisation of the body appreciation construct, which should facilitate further cross-cultural research.Item First-language raters’ opinions when validating word recordings for a newly developed speech reception threshold test(AOSIS, 2018-03-29) Panday S; Kathard H; Pillay M; Wilson WBackground: The purpose of this study was to consider the value of adding first-language speaker ratings to the process of validating word recordings for use in a new speech reception threshold (SRT) test in audiology. Previous studies had identified 28 word recordings as being suitable for use in a new SRT test. These word recordings had been shown to satisfy the linguistic criteria of familiarity, phonetic dissimilarity and tone, and the psychometric criterion of homogeneity of audibility. Objectives: The aim of the study was to consider the value of adding first-language speakers’ ratings when validating word recordings for a new SRT test. Method: A single observation, cross-sectional design was used to collect and analyse quantitative data in this study. Eleven first-language isiZulu speakers, purposively selected, were asked to rate each of the word recordings for pitch, clarity, naturalness, speech rate and quality on a 5-point Likert scale. The percent agreement and Friedman test were used for analysis. Results: More than 20% of these 11 participants rated the three-word recordings below ‘strongly agree’ in the category of pitch or tone, and one-word recording below ‘strongly agree’ in the categories of pitch or tone, clarity or articulation and naturalness or dialect. Conclusion: The first-language speaker ratings proved to be a valuable addition to the process of selecting word recordings for use in a new SRT test. In particular, these ratings identified potentially problematic word recordings in the new SRT test that had been missed by the previously and more commonly used linguistic and psychometric selection criteria.Item A validation of the workplace dignity scale : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Psychology at Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand(Massey University, 2019) Scott-Campbell, CaseyWorkplace Dignity has long been the subject of scholarly enquiry, although until recently the body of research has been dominated by ethnographic work. Recently, Thomas and Lucas (2019) developed the first quantitative, direct measure of perceptions of workplace dignity: the Workplace Dignity Scale (WDS). Given the importance of understanding dignity in the workplace, this study sought to replicate the initial scale validation study conducted by Thomas and Lucas, so as to confirm the reliability and validity of the scale prior to its future applied and scholarly use. Moreover, the current study contributes to the ongoing methodological reform of psychology towards a transparent and rigorous science by preregistering the method and analysis script prior to collecting data. A large sample of workers (N = 853) from the United States were recruited through Prolific Academic and completed an online questionnaire that included the WDS, as well as theoretically related scales (e.g., workplace incivility). Confirmatory factor analyses indicated that the model specified by Thomas and Lucas had reasonable global fit and estimates of reliability (ωt) indicated that the two main factors of the scale, Dignity and Indignity, had high internal consistency. Nomological analyses revealed that the Dignity factor of the WDS was significantly correlated in the expected directions with theoretically related variables. Furthermore, the Dignity and Indignity factors of the WDS were found to highly correlate with one another, posing questions as to whether the two factors are qualitatively different phenomena as was argued by Thomas and Lucas. It is concluded that the WDS is a promising tool for measuring workplace dignity although refinement of the proposed measurement model may be necessary.Item Exploring the concept of learning agility : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Business Studies in Human Resource Management at Massey University, Manawatu, New Zealand(Massey University, 2018) Miller, SimonContinuous learning and employee adaptation have become increasingly important within modern organisational environments categorised by volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. In turn, this has resulted in a growing body of literature supporting a construct known as learning agility. This study sought to determine the underlying psychological variables that support individual learning agility. In doing so, cognitive ability, personality, and emotional intelligence assessments distributed by OPRA Psychology Group were administered to a random sample of Scenic Hotel Group employees to obtain quantifiable data. Alongside this, a validated learning agility questionnaire was administered to participants and their managers to obtain a measure of each employee’s learning agility. Participants’ learning agility scores were then correlated with their personality, cognitive ability, and emotional intelligence assessment results. Results of this study indicate that learning agility is significantly positively correlated with overall cognitive ability. Furthermore, learning agility shows a significantly positive relationship with personality factors associated with openness to experience, extraversion, and the neuroticism sub-trait, tense-driven. As an outcome, this has provided for a tentative model of learning agility comprising of: 1. Cognitive ability 2. Learning mindset and behaviour 3. Contribution to the social learning environment This research adds to the current body of literature available into a construct known as a key determinant of employee performance and potential (Eichinger & Lombardo, 2000; McCauley, 2001). Furthermore, it provides the foundations for the development of a derived measure of learning agility that can be determined using existing psychometric assessments.Item Mapping the mind with broken theodolites : contributions to multidimensional scaling methodology, with special application to triadic data, and the sorting and hierarchical sorting methods : a dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Human Development Studies at Massey University(Massey University, 1995) Bimler, D LThis thesis focuses on the psychological applications of Multidimensional Scaling (MDS) theory and methodology. The results are investigated of treating certain kinds of dissimilarity data (triadic data, to begin with) as comparisons between dissimilarities. This is a familiar idea but many of its implications are unexplored. First, when data are available from more than one subject, it becomes possible to apply models of individual variation, in non-metric form. The Weighted Euclidean (or INDSCAL) model is the one used most often in this thesis, but the more general IDIOSCAL model is used to investigate individual differences in the case of colour vision. The data sets need not be complete. This is important when the size of the stimulus set means that there are too many comparisons for a single subject to respond to them all. Second, Maximum Likelihood Estimation (MLE) becomes a straightforward generalisation of the standard hill-descent algorithm for minimising Stress. Third, data collected with the sorting and hierarchical sorting methods can also be regarded as dissimilarity comparisons. The convenience of the sorting method and the lesser demands it makes on subjects when the number of stimuli is large have led to its widespread use, but the best way of analysing such data is uncertain. A 'reconstructed dyad' analysis is described and shown to be better than the usual co-occurence approach in a number of examples in which evidence about the true perceptual or conceptual space is available independently. Finally, when the data are interpreted as dissimilarity comparisons, an interactive method of scaling large stimulus sets becomes possible, in which one selectively acquires incomplete data, concentrating on comparisons which are expected to contain most information about the configuration. This approach has been applied twice, with the stimuli being simple synthesised sounds in one example, and complex natural sounds (canine heartbeats) in the second, working well in both cases. The potential applications for training people to recognise sounds are briefly considered. Some possibilities for future research arising from this work are described.Item Integrity, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and ability : relationships and measurement : a dissertation presented in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand(Massey University, 2011) Wood, Paul QThe purpose of this dissertation was to increase knowledge relevant to psychometrically oriented workplace selection and classification. Multivariate relationships among integrity, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and fluid and crystallised ability scales were investigated. Adverse impact and the capacity to use response time information as criteria of ability scoring were also investigated. These three foci all had the potential to contribute knowledge capable of increasing the accuracy of the measurement and interpretation of commonly used psychometric assessments. Two cross-sectional studies were undertaken. The first study used archival data for extant assessments of ability, general personality, and integrity. It involved 211 participants having undertaken assessments as a function of job applications. The second study designed and piloted new scales of integrity, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and fluid and crystallised ability. It involved 317 participants who completed these scales online as voluntary participants. The first study found integrity to be related to both conscientiousness and neuroticism, but not substantially related to ability. Conscientiousness was also negatively related to crystallised ability. These findings were replicated in the second study. The first study’s neuroticism scale which included a suspicion/cynicism facet (i.e., subscale) had a negative relationship with ability indices. This finding was not replicated in the second study. This may have been due to the absence of a neuroticism facet measuring suspicion/cynicism in the second study. Those identifying as Maori within the first study were found to score substantially less well than non-Maori on crystallised ability indices, but not other scales measured. Calculations suggested any resulting adverse impact could be reduced by combining ability assessments with scales of integrity, conscientiousness, and neuroticism. These calculations were based in part upon the assumption that relationships among assessments are likely to account for shared variance in job performance predictions. No significant differences were found in the second study; although the very small sample size used (N = 22) encourages caution regarding the robustness of this result. Findings from the second study also suggested that relative to low-ability respondents, highability respondents took less time to complete crystallised items and more time to complete fluid ability items. A small significant relationship was also observed between conscientiousness and the length of time taken to complete the fluid ability scale. The studies undertaken had a number of limitations. One limitation shared across these studies was the very small number of participants identifying as Maori (N46 in Study 1 and N22 in Study 2). Another common limitation was the inability to generalise findings based upon crosssectional data drawn from participant groups of convenience rather than individuals selected via probability sampling. Despite such limitations the preceding findings have a number of practical implications. One such implication is that relationships among scales may vary according to whether the level of analysis undertaken is at the Big Five or facet level and whose version of a scale is examined. On this basis practitioners should examine items in order to understand scale output, and researchers should examine relationships at the level of facet or ability subcomponent. Practitioners should also use personality assessments alongside those of ability if they wish to maximise predictive validity and reduce adverse impact for those identifying as Maori. Furthermore, the use of response time information in testing is probably better suited to controlling and checking respondents’ approach to answering assessments than incorporation in scoring algorithms. This dissertation makes two novel contributions concerning relationships between response time and participant characteristics. Firstly, negative relationships between ability indices and conscientiousness or neuroticism scales appear real. They do not appear to be a consequence of more conscientious or neurotic respondents taking longer to complete ability scales. Secondly, poor timemanagement strategies do not explain response time results that are inconsistent with the belief that higher-ability respondents will complete assessments more quickly than their lower-ability peers. Differences in the cognitive requirements associated with fluid and crystallised tasks instead appear to explain why higher-ability respondents take relatively less time to complete crystallised scales, but relatively more time to complete fluid ability scales.Item Levels of measurement and statistical analyses(24/05/2021) Williams MMost researchers and students in psychology learn of S. S. Stevens’ scales or “levels” of measurement (nominal, ordinal, interval, and ratio), and of his rules setting out which statistical analyses are admissible with each measurement level. Many are nevertheless left confused about the basis of these rules, and whether they should be rigidly followed. In this article, I attempt to provide an accessible explanation of the measurement-theoretic concerns that led Stevens to argue that certain types of analyses are inappropriate with data of particular levels of measurement. I explain how these measurement-theoretic concerns are distinct from the statistical assumptions underlying data analyses, which rarely include assumptions about levels of measurement. The level of measurement of observations can nevertheless have important implications for statistical assumptions. I conclude that researchers may find it more useful to critically investigate the plausibility of the statistical assumptions underlying analyses than to limit themselves to the set of analyses that Stevens believed to be admissible with data of a given level of measurement.Item Validating the workplace dignity scale(University of California Press for the Society for the Improvement of Psychological Science (SIPS), 20/07/2020) Scott-Campbell C; Williams MWorkplace Dignity has long been the subject of scholarly enquiry, although until recently the body of research has been dominated by ethnographic work. Recently, Thomas and Lucas (2019) developed the first quantitative, direct measure of perceptions of workplace dignity: the Workplace Dignity Scale (WDS). Given the importance of understanding dignity in the workplace, this study sought to replicate the initial scale validation study conducted by Thomas and Lucas, so as to further test the validity of the WDS and the reliability of the scores it produces. Moreover, the current study contributes to the ongoing methodological reform of psychology towards a transparent and rigorous science by preregistering the method and analysis script prior to collecting data. A large sample of workers (N = 812) from the United States were recruited through Prolific Academic and completed an online questionnaire that included the WDS, as well as theoretically related scales (e.g., workplace incivility). Confirmatory factor analyses indicated that the model specified by Thomas and Lucas had reasonable global fit, although it did not meet all of our criteria for good fit, and estimates of reliability (ωt) indicated that responses to items making up the two subscales of the WDS, Dignity and Indignity, had high internal consistency. Nomological analyses revealed that the Dignity subscale of the WDS was significantly correlated in the expected directions with theoretically related variables. Furthermore, the Dignity and Indignity factors of the WDS were found to highly correlate with one another, and an exploratory analysis suggested that the Indignity factor might be a methodological artefact, posing questions as to whether the two factors are qualitatively different phenomena as was argued by Thomas and Lucas. It is concluded that the WDS is a promising tool for measuring workplace dignity although refinement of the proposed measurement model may be necessary.
