Restricted accessResearch articleFirst published online 2023-09
Psychometric Analysis of the Modified Differential Emotions Scale and the Six-Item Life Orientation Test-Revised in a Cohort of Older Women from the Women's Health Initiative
Positive affect and emotional resources, such as optimism, may play a major role in women's health and promote healthy well-being later in life. However, positive affect and optimism measures have not been psychometrically assessed in older women, despite relations to health. Therefore, the objective of this study was to psychometrically assess measures of positive affect and optimism and test their association with other measures of well-being.
Methods:
In a Women's Health Initiative subcohort of 58,810 women (mean age [standard deviation] 79.0 [6.1]; 89% White), positive affect and optimism were measured using the modified Differential Emotions Scale (mDES) and Life Orientation Test-Revised (LOT-R), respectively. Reliability was tested using Cronbach's alpha and McDonald's omega. Performance was assessed using item response theory. Factor analysis was used to explore the construct validity of the LOT-R. Convergent and divergent validity with other well-being measures was tested.
Results:
Results suggest good reliability (mDES: Cronbach's alpha = 0.90 and omega total = 0.92; LOT-R: Cronbach's alpha = 0.79, omega hierarchical = 0.61, and omega total = 0.83). Item response analyses indicate mDES's ability to discriminate across positive affect; LOT-R was skewed toward lower optimism levels. Exploratory factor analyses suggest a two-factor solution for the LOT-R. Significant, but small correlations in expected directions to well-being measures confirmed validity hypotheses.
Conclusions:
The mDES and LOT-R measured positive affect and optimism with good reliability, item performance, and validity in a large sample of older postmenopausal women, supporting use of these measures to quantify effects of positive affect and optimism-promoting interventions.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
MedinaLD, SaboS, VespaJ. Living Longer: Historical and Projected Life Expectancy in the United States, 1960 to 2060. Population Estimates and Projections. Current Population Reports; 2020. Available from: https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/library/publications/2020/demo/p25-1145.pdf [Last accessed: April15, 2022].
2.
AustadSN. Why women live longer than men: Sex differences in longevity. Gend Med, 2006; 3(2):79–92; doi: 10.1016/S1550-8579(06)80198-1
3.
RogersRG, EverettBG, OngeJMS, et al.Social, behavioral, and biological factors, and sex differences in mortality. Demography, 2010; 47(3):555–578; doi: 10.1353/dem.0.0119
4.
FredricksonBL, JoinerT. Reflections on positive emotions and upward spirals. Perspect Psychol Sci, 2018; 13(2):194–199; doi: 10.1177/1745691617692106
5.
FredricksonBL. Positive Emotions Broaden and Build. In: Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, Volume 47. (Devine P, Plant A. eds.) Academic Press; 2013; pp. 1–53; doi: 10.1016/B978-0-12-407236-7.00001-2
6.
ScheierMF, CarverCS. Optimism, coping, and health: Assessment and implications of generalized outcome expectancies. Health Psychol, 1985; 4(3):219–247; doi: 10.1037/0278-6133.4.3.219
7.
ScheierMF, WeintraubJK, CarverCS. Coping with stress: Divergent strategies of optimists and pessimists. J Pers Soc Psychol, 1986; 51(6):1257–1264; doi: 10.1037/0022-3514.51.6.1257
8.
ConversanoC, RotondoA, LensiE, et al.Optimism and its impact on mental and physical well-being. Clin Pract Epidemiol Ment Health, 2010; 6:25–29; doi: 10.2174/1745017901006010025
9.
ZautraAJ, JohnsonLM, DavisMC. Positive affect as a source of resilience for women in chronic pain. J Consult Clin Psychol, 2005; 73(2):212–220; doi: 10.1037/0022-006X.73.2.212
JamesP, KimES, KubzanskyLD, et al.Optimism and Healthy Aging in Women. Am J Prev Med, 2019; 56(1):116–124; doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2018.07.037
12.
KimES, JamesP, ZevonES, et al.Optimism and healthy aging in women and men. Am J Epidemiol, 2019; 188(6):1084–1091; doi: 10.1093/aje/kwz056
13.
TindleHA, ChangYF, KullerLH, et al.Optimism, cynical hostility, and incident coronary heart disease and mortality in the women's health initiative. Circulation, 2009; 120(8):656–662; doi: 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.108.827642
14.
ProgovacAM, ChangYF, ChangCCH, et al.Are optimism and cynical hostility associated with smoking cessation in older women?. Ann Behav Med, 2017; 51(4):500–510; doi: 10.1007/s12160-016-9873-x
15.
ProgovacAM, DonohueJM, MatthewsKA, et al.Optimism predicts sustained vigorous physical activity in postmenopausal women. Prev Med Rep, 2017; 8:286–293; doi: 10.1016/j.pmedr.2017.10.008
16.
HingleMD, WertheimBC, TindleHA, et al.Optimism and diet quality in the women's health initiative. J Acad Nutr Diet, 2014; 114(7):1036–1045; doi: 10.1016/j.jand.2013.12.018
17.
ProgovacAM, PettingerM, DonohueJM, et al.Optimism may moderate screening mammogram frequency in Medicare: A longitudinal study. Medicine (Baltimore), 2019; 98(24):e15869; doi: 10.1097/MD.0000000000015869
18.
FredricksonBL, TugadeMM, WaughCE, et al.What good are positive emotions in crises? A prospective study of resilience and emotions following the terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11th, 2001. J Pers Soc Psychol, 2003; 84(2):365–376; doi: 10.1037/0022-3514.84.2.365
19.
ScheierMF, CarverCS, BridgesMW. Distinguishing optimism from neuroticism (and trait anxiety, self-mastery, and self-esteem): A reevaluation of the Life Orientation Test. J Pers Soc Psychol, 1994; 67(6):1063–1078; doi: 10.1037/0022-3514.67.6.1063
20.
CohnMA, FredricksonBL, BrownSL, et al.Happiness unpacked: positive emotions increase life satisfaction by building resilience. Emotion, 2009; 9(3):361–368; doi: 10.1037/a0015952
21.
AndersonG, CummingsS, FreedmanLS, et al.Design of the Women's Health Initiative clinical trial and observational study. Control Clin Trials, 1998; 19(1):61–109; doi: 10.1016/s0197-2456(97)00078-0
22.
AndersonGL, MansonJ, WallaceR, et al.Implementation of the Women's Health Initiative study design. Ann Epidemiol, 2003; 13(9 Suppl):S5–S17; doi: 10.1016/s1047-2797(03)00043-7
23.
HaysJ, HuntJR, HubbellFA, et al.The Women's Health Initiative recruitment methods and results. Ann Epidemiol, 2003; 13(9 Suppl):S18–S77; doi: 10.1016/s1047-2797(03)00042-5
24.
WareJE, SherbourneCD. The MOS 36-item short-form health survey (SF-36). I. Conceptual framework and item selection. Med Care, 1992; 30(6):473–483.
25.
DienerE, EmmonsRA, LarsemRJ, et al.The satisfaction with life scale. J Pers Assess, 1985; 49(1):71–75; doi: 10.1207/s15327752jpa4901_13
26.
BurnamMA, WellsKB, LeakeB, et al.Development of a brief screening instrument for detecting depressive disorders. Med Care, 1988; 26(8):775–789.
27.
CohenS, KamarckT, MermelsteinR. A global measure of perceived stress. J Health Soc Behav, 1983; 24(4):385–396; doi: 10.2307/2136404
28.
TuunainenA, LangerRD, KlauberMR, et al.Short version of the CES-D (Burnam screen) for depression in reference to the structured psychiatric interview. Psychiatry Res, 2001; 103(2–3):261–270; doi: 10.1016/s0165-1781(01)00278-5
29.
MishraGD, GaleCR, SayerAA, et al.How useful are the SF-36 sub-scales in older people? Mokken scaling of data from the HALCyon programme. Qual Life Res, 2011; 20(7):1005–1010; doi: 10.1007/s11136-010-9838-7
30.
VallejoMA, Vallejo-SlockerL, Fernández-AbascalEG, et al.Determining Factors for Stress perception assessed with the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-4) in Spanish and other European samples. Front Psychol, 2018; 9:37; doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2018.00037
31.
López-OrtegaM, Torres-CastroS, Rosas-CarrascoO. Psychometric properties of the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS): Secondary analysis of the Mexican Health and Aging Study. Health Qual Life Outcomes, 2016; 14(1):170; doi: 10.1186/s12955-016-0573-9
32.
CronbachLJ. Coefficient alpha and the internal structure of tests. Psychometrika, 1951; 16(3):297–334; doi: 10.1007/BF02310555
33.
McDonaldRP.Test Theory: A Unified Treatment. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers: Mahwah, NJ; 1999.
34.
GlaesmerH, RiefW, MartinA, et al.Psychometric properties and population-based norms of the Life Orientation Test Revised (LOT-R). Br J Health Psychol, 2012; 17(2):432–445; doi: 10.1111/j.2044-8287.2011.02046.x
35.
HerzbergPY, GlaesmerH, HoyerJ. Separating optimism and pessimism: A robust psychometric analysis of the Revised Life Orientation Test (LOT-R). Psychol Assess, 2006; 18(4):433–438; doi: 10.1037/1040-3590.18.4.433
36.
AndersonJC, GerbingDW. Structural equation modeling in practice: A review and recommended two-step approach. Psychol Bull, 1988; 103(3):411–423.
37.
BentlerPM. Comparative fit indexes in structural models. Psychol Bull, 1990; 107(2):238–246; doi: 10.1037/0033-2909.107.2.238
38.
TuckerLR, LewisC. A reliability coefficient for maximum likelihood factor analysis. Psychometrika, 1973; 38(1):1–10; doi: 10.1007/BF02291170
39.
HuL, BentlerPM. Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Struct Equ Modeling, 1999; 6(1):1–55; doi: 10.1080/10705519909540118
40.
TeresiJA, FleishmanJA. Differential item functioning and health assessment. Qual Life Res, 2007; 16(Suppl 1):33–42; doi: 10.1007/s11136-007-9184-6
41.
ChalmersRP, CounsellA, FloraDB. It might not make a big DIF: Improved differential test functioning statistics that account for sampling variability. Educ Psychol Meas, 2016; 76(1):114–140; doi: 10.1177/0013164415584576
42.
R Core Team. R: A Language and Environment for Statistical Computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing: Vienna, Austria; 2022.
43.
RizopoulosD. ltm: An R package for latent variable modelling and item response theory analyses. J Stat Softw, 2006; 17(5):1–25.
44.
MazzaA, PunzoA, McGuireB. KernSmoothIRT: An R package for Kernel smoothing in item response theory. J Stat Softw, 2014; 58(6):1–34.
45.
ChalmersRP. mirt: A Multidimensional Item Response Theory Package for the R Environment. J Stat Softw, 2012; 48(6):1–29; doi: 10.18637/jss.v048.i06
46.
RevelleW.psych: Procedures for psychological, psychometric, and personality research. Northwestern University: Evanston, IL; 2022. Available from: https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=psych
47.
RosseelY. lavaan: An R package for structural equation modeling. J Stat Softw, 2012; 48(2):1–36.
48.
EpskampS. semPlot: Unified Visualizations of Structural Equation Models. Struct Equat Model Multidis J, 2015; 22(3):474–483; doi: 10.1080/10705511.2014.937847
49.
UmucuE, BrooksJM, LeeB, et al.Measuring dispositional optimism in student Veterans: An item response theory analysis. Mil Psychol, 2018; 30(6):590–597; doi: 10.1080/08995605.2018.1522161
50.
ChiesiF, GalliS, PrimiC, et al.The accuracy of the Life Orientation Test-Revised (LOT-R) in measuring dispositional optimism: evidence from item response theory analyses. J Pers Assess, 2013; 95(5):523–529; doi: 10.1080/00223891.2013.781029
51.
StecaP, MonzaniD, GrecoA, et al.Item response theory analysis of the Life Orientation Test-Revised: Age and gender differential item functioning analyses. Assessment, 2015; 22(3):341–350; doi: 10.1177/1073191114544471
52.
GalanakisM, StalikasA, PezirkianidisC, et al.Reliability and validity of the modified differential emotions scale (mDES) in a Greek Sample. Psychology, 2016; 7(1):101–113; doi: 10.4236/psych.2016.71012
53.
AnthonyEG, Kritz-SilversteinD, Barrett-ConnorE. Optimism and mortality in older men and women: The rancho bernardo study. J Aging Res, 2016; 2016:5185104; doi: 10.1155/2016/5185104
54.
HinzA, SanderC, GlaesmerH, et al.Optimism and pessimism in the general population: psychometric properties of the Life Orientation Test (LOT-R). Int J Clin Health Psychol, 2017; 17(2):161–170; doi: 10.1016/j.ijchp.2017.02.003
55.
SegerstromSC, EvansDR, Eisenlohr-MoulTA. Optimism and pessimism dimensions in the Life Orientation Test-Revised: Method and meaning. J Res Pers, 2011; 45(1):126–129; doi: 10.1016/j.jrp.2010.11.007
56.
ScheierMF, SwansonJD, BarlowMA, et al.Optimism versus pessimism as predictors of physical health: A comprehensive reanalysis of dispositional optimism research. Am Psychol, 2021; 76(3):529–548; doi: 10.1037/amp0000666
57.
ContiG, HeckmanJ, UrzuaS. The education-health gradient. Am Econ Rev, 2010; 100(2):234–238; doi: 10.1257/AER.100.2.234
58.
GoldringT, LangeF, Richards-ShubikS. Testing for changes in the SES-mortality gradient when the distribution of education changes too. J Health Econ, 2016; 46:120–130; doi: 10.1016/j.jhealeco.2015.12.002
59.
KimbroRT, BzostekS, GoldmanN, et al.Race, ethnicity, and the education gradient in health. Health Aff (Millwood), 2017; 27(2):361–372; doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.27.2.361
60.
Van CappellenP, RiceEL, CatalinoLI, et al.Positive affective processes underlie positive health behaviour change. Psychol Health, 2018; 33(1):77–97; doi: 10.1080/08870446.2017.1320798
61.
UmstattdMR, McAuleyE, MotlRW, et al.Pessimism and physical functioning in older women: Influence of self-efficacy. J Behav Med, 2007; 30(2):107–114; doi: 10.1007/s10865-006-9089-9
62.
SmithN, YoungA, LeeC. Optimism, health-related hardiness and well-being among older Australian women. J Health Psychol, 2004; 9(6):741–752; doi: 10.1177/1359105304045373
63.
LeeH, MasonD. Optimism and coping strategies among Caucasian, Korean, and African American older women. Health Care Women Int, 2013; 34(12):1084–1096; doi: 10.1080/07399332.2013.798327
64.
SonderenE van, SandermanR, CoyneJC. Ineffectiveness of reverse wording of questionnaire items: Let's learn from cows in the rain. PLoS One, 2013; 8(7):e68967; doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0068967
65.
WoukK, TuckerC, PenceBW, et al.Positive emotions during infant feeding and breastfeeding outcomes. J Hum Lact, 2020; 36(1):157–167; doi: 10.1177/0890334419845646
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
