Measuring Self-Esteem with Expanded Format in a Fraction of Time: ESE-S and ESE-US.

Despite the ubiquity of Likert format scales, they are not without problems-distorted dimensionality being one of the most serious. Zhang and Savalei proposed an alternative to Likert format called the Expanded format, in which each response option in the Likert scale is replaced with a series of complete statements. In response to their recent call, the purpose of the present study is to develop concise but valid Expanded format scales for the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale. Short (four-item) and ultra-short (two-item) scales were constructed, and their validity was examined in four studies. Results showed both new scales had good psychometric properties (dimensionality, reliability, and validity). Therefore, they would seem to be practical alternatives to the RSES for future research.

Why Do Regular and Reversed Items Load on Separate Factors? Response Difficulty vs. Item Extremity.

When constructing measurement scales, regular and reversed items are often used (e.g., "I am satisfied with my job"/"I am not satisfied with my job"). Some methodologists recommend excluding reversed items because they are more difficult to understand and therefore engender a second, artificial factor distinct from the regular-item factor. The current study compares two explanations for why a construct's dimensionality may become distorted: response difficulty and item extremity. Two types of reversed items were created: negation items ("The conditions of my life are not good") and polar opposites ("The conditions of my life are bad"), with the former type having higher response difficulty. When extreme wording was used (e.g., "excellent/terrible" instead of "good/bad"), negation items did not load on a factor distinct from regular items, but polar opposites did. Results thus support item extremity over response difficulty as an explanation for dimensionality distortion. Given that scale developers seldom check for extremity, it is unsurprising that regular and polar opposite items often load on distinct factors.

Testing the Nonlinearity Assumption Underlying the Use of Reverse-Keyed Items: A Logical Response Perspective.

Researchers often assume a strong, linear relationship between regular- and reverse-keyed items, with responses on regular-keyed items (e.g., agree) perfectly mirroring those on reverse-keyed items (e.g., disagree). The current research challenges this received view and propounds a possible nonlinear relationship, partly due to the logical tendency of midlevel respondents to disagree with both types of items. In four examples (reported human height, job satisfaction, positive-negative affect, and self-esteem; total N = 50,544), a nonlinear model consistently explained additional item variance beyond a linear model. We further demonstrate that this relationship is moderated by item characteristics such as item extremity (job satisfaction) and item softening (self-esteem). Suboptimal modeling of the relationship may result in the apparent bidmensionality of a construct that characterizes regular- and reverse-keyed items as separate factors. User-friendly syntax for the examination of nonlinearity is provided to enhance the accessibility of the procedure.

Why Do People Agree With Both Regular and Reversed Items? A Logical Response Perspective.

The current research challenges the received view that misresponses to reversed items are the result of participants' irrational behavior. On the contrary, for participants at a midpoint level of a trait, it is perfectly logical to agree and disagree with seemingly equivalent statements (e.g., I'm not tall, but neither am I short). For this reason, regular and reversed items for a unidimensional construct were predicted to load on separate factors. Two types of reversed items-polar opposites and negated regular items-were also predicted to load on separate factors, as they are qualitatively different. An empirical study supported this explanation. Differential responding was found to be highest for participants at the mid-level of a trait and diminished toward the ends, revealing a quadratic relationship and a trait × method interaction. Thus, our findings demonstrate that the logical response pattern of individuals at the mid-level of a trait is another previously unrecognized explanation for why the inclusion of regular and reverse-keyed items can contribute to the apparent bi-dimensionality of unidimensional constructs (for data analysis results, see https://osf.io/krh2w/).

Bifactor Model Is Not the Best-Fitting Model for Self-Esteem: Investigation With a Novel Technique.

In the measurement of self-esteem, previous research assumes that all respondents are qualitatively similar. The assumption has not been adequately tested. The current study examines its validity using factor mixture modeling. Results reveal two qualitatively distinct classes: the first provides more consistent responses to positive self-esteem items than the second. The correlations between positive and negative self-esteem suggest that self-esteem is essentially unidimensional in the first class but bidimensional in the second. Furthermore, those with high self-esteem are more likely to belong to the first class; those with low self-esteem are more likely to belong to the second class. The observed dimensionality of self-esteem depends on a person's level on the trait. Finally, we found that the two-class solution fits the data much better than a simple one-class, two-factor solution or a bifactor solution. Psychometric researchers should no longer ignore the possible existence of qualitatively distinct groups in an underlying population. We include Mplus syntax together with a detailed explanation for researchers to conduct similar investigations on constructs of interest.

Testing the Assumption of Population Homogeneity in the Measurement of Dispositional Optimism: Factor Mixture Modeling Analysis.

The assumption of population homogeneity in the measurement of dispositional optimism was examined. U.S. and Canadian respondents (N = 591) completed an optimism scale. Possible population heterogeneity was analyzed using factor mixture modeling. Two major results emerged. First, population homogeneity was not supported: A large class of participants had trouble giving consistent answers to optimism items, optimism and pessimism items, or, especially, pessimism items. Second, after the removal of this problematic class, the correlation between optimism and pessimism was found to be .94, a magnitude large enough to support the assumption of unidimensionality. Although psychometric problems with the measurement of optimism have not been identified previously, this study suggests that the typical measurement of dispositional optimism requires substantial revision. The findings showcase the importance of factor mixture modeling in evaluating the psychometric properties of a measurement scale.

Careless Responding Threatens Factorial Analytic Results and Construct Validity of Personality Measure.

The current research investigates the impact of careless responding on factorial analytic results and construct validity with real data. Results showed that inclusion of careless respondents in data analysis distorts factor loading pattern and hinders recovery of theoretical existing factors. Careless respondents also blur the distinction of theoretically distinct factors, resulting in higher inter-factor correlations. That careless responding may threaten convergent validity also receives limited support. Researchers are advised to exclude careless respondents before statistical analysis.

Self-Determination and Personal Identity in University Students: The Mediating Role of Future Orientation.

In this study, we sought to extend the research on self-determination, future orientation, and personal identity construction by integrating the theories on self-determination and future orientation to provide a conceptual framework for understanding the relations between personal identity and the following individual characteristics: Hope, optimism, awareness of self, and perceived choice. 191 university students in China responded surveys in hardcopies on an individual basis. Our SEM results revealed that proximal future orientation influenced the mechanisms through which distal psychological traits affected identity construction. Specifically, hope mediated the effects of self-awareness on the participants' personal identity ratings (b = .45, p < .05). Although optimism was related to both awareness of self and perceived choice, it was not significantly related to personal identity. This study suggested an extended framework through which we could understand how the interaction between future orientation and self-determination can predict personal identity. The findings have significant implications for interventions in educational settings.

Novel Insights Into Item Keying/Valence Effect Using Latent Difference (LD) Modeling Analysis.

Responses to positively and negatively worded items are not always consistent, a behavioral pattern known as the item valence method effect. The current research employed latent difference (LD) modeling (Pohl, Steyer, & Kraus, 2008 ) to help determine explanations of the method effect. Respondents were more likely to reject negative characteristics (measured by negatively worded items) than to accept positive ones (measured by positively worded items), and supplementary analysis showed that this tendency was associated with social desirability response style. Correlations between the method effect and social desirability varied across Big Five personality traits, implying that social desirability cannot be the sole reason behind the phenomenon. Other possible explanations are discussed.

Self-determination and personal identity in university students: the mediating role of future orientation

In this study, we sought to extend the research on self-determination, future orientation, and personal identity construction by integrating the theories on self-determination and future orientation to provide a conceptual framework for understanding the relations between personal identity and the following individual characteristics: Hope, optimism, awareness of self, and perceived choice. 191 university students in China responded surveys in hardcopies on an individual basis. Our SEM results revealed that proximal future orientation influenced the mechanisms through which distal psychological traits affected identity construction. Specifically, hope mediated the effects of self-awareness on the participants' personal identity ratings (b = .45, p < .05). Although optimism was related to both awareness of self and perceived choice, it was not significantly related to personal identity. This study suggested an extended framework through which we could understand how the interaction between future orientation and self-determination can predict personal identity. The findings have significant implications for interventions in educational settings

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Is the Dark Triad Better Studied Using a Variable- or a Person-Centered Approach? An Exploratory Investigation.

Despite Allport's early call to study personality as a coordinated system of traits within individual rather than separate traits, researchers often assume personality variables are largely distinct, independent characteristics. In the current research, we examined the usual assumption that Dark Triad traits (narcissism, psychopathy, and Machiavellianism) are best studied using a variable-centered (dimensional), rather than a person-centered (taxonic), approach. Results showed that a variable-centered approach is appropriate in understanding the Dark Triad, and yet individuals scoring high on one Dark Triad dimension also tend to score high on other dimensions. Based on these results, we concluded that it is appropriate to study individual differences in the Dark Triad (inferences based on persons) by capturing the common variance among the three traits using a variable-centered approach, rather than treating these traits as independent or uncoordinated characteristics.

Hope and General Self-efficacy: Two Measures of the Same Construct?

The aim of this study was to test the extent to which hope measure is equivalent to general self-efficacy measure. Questionnaire data on these two constructs and other external variables were collected from 199 Chinese college students. The factor analytic results suggested that hope and self-efficacy items measured the same construct. The unidimensional model combining hope items and GSE items fit the data as well as the bidimensional model, indicating that their corresponding items measured the same underlying construct. Further analyses showed that hope and GSE did not correlate with external variables differently in a systematic manner. Most of these correlational differences were non-significant and negligible. These findings suggested that the literatures studying GSE and hope could be considered to be integrated and that researchers need to recognize and acknowledge the conceptual and operational similarities among these constructs in the literature.

Further Considerations in Using Items With Diverse Content to Measure Acquiescence.

To measure the response style of acquiescence, researchers recommend the use of at least 15 items with heterogeneous content. Such an approach is consistent with its theoretical definition and is a substantial improvement over traditional methods. Nevertheless, measurement of acquiescence can be enhanced by two additional considerations: first, to ensure that it is not confounded with item valence, equal numbers of positively and negatively phrased items should be used; second, the validity of acquiescence scores can be substantially improved when derived from more than 15 items: about twice that number appears to be the minimum. These issues are illustrated empirically and recommendations are made for research practice.

Implications of Item Keying and Item Valence for the Investigation of Construct Dimensionality.

Factor analysis and nomological network analysis are commonly used as complementary procedures in the investigation of the dimensionality of constructs (e.g., self-esteem, job satisfaction). Although it has been demonstrated that factor analyses are often biased toward a two-dimensional solution for measures including regular- and reverse-keyed items, less attention has been paid to the implications for nomological network analyses. We propose, and demonstrate empirically in two studies, that item keying is confounded with item valence (i.e., favorability of item content), and that item valence can bias the results of both factor analysis and nomological network analysis toward a two-dimensional interpretation. We also demonstrate that the valence effect is related to, but distinguishable from, social desirability response bias. We caution that the practice of excluding reverse-keyed items to achieve unidimensionality can lead to distortion in correlations among constructs, and we offer alternative remedies to the valence problem.

Does Acquiescence Affect Individual Items Consistently?

Previous research has found the effects of acquiescence to be generally consistent across item aggregates within a single survey (i.e., essential tau-equivalence), but it is unknown whether this phenomenon is consistent at the individual item level. This article evaluated the often assumed but inadequately tested proposition that individual items are affected by acquiescence to the same degree. We modeled an external acquiescence criterion to assess (a) whether it affected scale items consistently and (b) whether it would be strongly correlated with an acquiescence factor based on an assumption of tau-equivalence. The results did not support this assumption. As further evidence, we identified a situation in which this tau-equivalence assumption could potentially be violated. We propose that the response style be best understood within a framework of an acquiescence × item interaction.

Emotional reactions of anger and shame to the norm violation characterizing episodes of interpersonal harm.

Norms are the socially shared restraints by which human behaviour is regulated. When applied to events involving interpersonal harm, the perceived level of norm violation by a perpetrator will lead to a target's emotional reactions of both anger and shame, with such processes mediated by the target's judgments of his or her loss of face arising from the episode, the perpetrator's intent to harm, and the blame ascribed to the perpetrator. Structural equation modelling (SEM) confirmed this set of linkages with targets of harm from both Hong Kong and the United States reporting on a harmful exchange in their own life, suggesting the generalizability of this model in disparate cultural contexts.