Development and Validation of Teachers’ Assessment Belief of Mathematical Thinking Instrument

<p style="text-align: justify;">This study was conducted to corroborate in understanding the teachers’ beliefs about assessment practices. The prior studies related to teachers’ assessment beliefs in mathematics have been done to assess teachers’ beliefs in the general context of mathematics teaching. This study developed an instrument to assess teachers’ assessment beliefs of mathematical thinking. The research aimed to develop and validate a scale of assessment beliefs of mathematical thinking by using the confirmatory factor analysis. The first draft of the scale contained 25 items. The sample of the study consisted of 537 mathematics teachers from public schools in Oman. The instrument was a questionnaire with a 5-point Likert scale. The scale was validated by asking a number of experts in mathematics educational measurement and evaluation. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis was applied to test the model of assessment beliefs of mathematical thinking scale using AMOS 25.0. All constructs had acceptable reliability. The model had a good model fit for the assessment beliefs of mathematical thinking scale which obtainable from the fit indices tests. The findings revealed that all fit criteria indices were realized. The results also showed acceptable validity and construct reliability for the scale.</p>

Maladaptive and Adaptive Cognitions About the Self and Others: Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the Brief Core Schemas Scales

The presence of dysfunctional cognitions about how individuals see themselves and others is a hallmark of psychopathology. The Brief Core Schemas Scale (BCSS) was developed to evaluate adaptive and dysfunctional beliefs about the self and others. This study describes the first psychometric analysis of the BCSS in the Portuguese population. Participants were recruited from community ( N = 320, Mage=27.31, DP = 12.75). Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to confirm the BCSS factorial structure. Four-factor model revealed moderate to adequate goodness-of-fit indices (χ2/df = 717.1, (246) p = .01; SRMR = .044; RMSEA = .077; CFI/TLI < .90). Negative views of the self and others correlated positively with early maladaptive schemas, distress, and symptomatology and correlated negatively with psychological well-being. An inversed correlational pattern was found with the positive views of the self and others. Despite the model's moderate adherence to the data, results suggest that the BCSS may be an asset in the assessment of dysfunctional and adaptive cognitions about the self and others. Further analysis is required to deepen the psychometric properties of the BCSS in the Portuguese population.

Inclusion at universities: Psychometric properties of an inclusive management scale as perceived by students

Introduction During the last century, the inclusion of all kinds of diversity became a social imperative in all social spaces but above all in some institutions such as the educational ones. Among these, inclusion has been least studied in the tertiary education organizations. This communication proposes and evaluates the psychometric properties of a new instrument, named Inclusive Management in Tertiary Institutions Scale (IMTIS), to assess inclusive management in universities. Method The researchers used a quantitative research model through survey. We based on the Index for Inclusion to design the IMTIS. We first submitted it to the assessment of experts. Then we applied the resulting version in an online survey including a sample of 1557 students from two universities and 121 different undergraduate careers. A panel of experts judged the content validity of the instrument. Participants answered the IMTIS after informed consent. We used confirmatory factor analysis to assess the construct validity of the instrument. We also evaluated the reliability of the measurements. Results From a kit of 33 originally proposed items, we obtained a version of 22 items with CVR between 0.60 and 1.00, and a IVC = 0.78. The confirmatory factor analysis showed that the six-factor solution had a better adjustment than the one and three factors solutions (RMSEA = 0.059; CFI = 0.947; TLI = 0.937). The McDonald ω coefficients were between 0.864 and 0.922. Conclusion The results deliver evidence that supports the validity and reliability of the IMTIS measurements to carry out research and diagnosis of inclusive management in higher education institutions.

Student Burnout in Higher Education: A Demand-Resource Model Approach

Student burnout is a serious problem in higher education. It is associated with harmful consequences, such as decreased engagement, performance, and motivation, which can lead to dropout. The job demand-resource model of burnout is a comprehensive framework to grasp the factors related to the emergence of burnout. Although numerous studies claim its suitability in explaining burnout in work environments, its applicability in the educational context is less explored. The study aimed to analyze the structure and reliability of the newly developed University Demand-Resource Questionnaire (UDRQ) and to explore the links between its subscales and symptoms of student burnout. Using the online survey method, 743 Hungarian undergraduate students participated in the data collection. The student version of the Maslach Burnout Inventory was used in addition to the UDRQ. In the data analysis procedure, confirmatory factor analysis, correlation analysis, and structural equation modeling were utilized. The confirmatory factor analysis identified a five-factor structure related to both demands and resources. Correlation analysis revealed burnout to be associated positively to the subscales of demands and negatively to resources. Structural equation modeling analysis indicated that all five demands and two resources subscales can be used to build a model that predicts a significant proportion of the variance of student burnout scores. The findings suggest the demand-resource theory is an appropriate framework to predict burnout in higher education. The newly developed UDRQ has stable structure and good reliability and can be a useful tool in subsequent research related to student burnout.

Cross Cultural Adaptation and Validation of Hindi Version of WHOQOL-BREF in Patients With Chronic Low Back Pain

Aim of the study was to validate Hindi version of WHOQOL-BREF in chronic low back pain patients (CLBP). In this cross-sectional study, 111 patients with CLBP were recruited. In addition to demographic information, two questionnaires Hi WHOQOL-BREF and SF-36 (Reference scale) were administered at day 0 and day 3. NRS was used for pain evaluation. Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was used for scale reliability. Construct validity was analysed using Pearson correlation coefficient. Confirmatory factor analysis was performed to determine the relationships between the eight domains of SF-36 and four domains of the WHOQOL-BREF.Cronbach’s alpha coefficients were acceptable for all domains of both Hi WHOQOL-BREF (0.869 - 0.938) and SF-36 (0.752 - 0.943) questionnaires. Pearson correlation coefficients of both instruments were partly to strongly correlate with most domains (r ≥0.40). Correlations for domains with similar constructs were stronger than those measuring varied constructs. Confirmatory factor analysis recommended approximately good relationships among the SF-36 and WHOQOL-BREF domains. Our study suggests that WHOQOL-BREF Hindi version is a reliable and valid tool for clinical and research use in CLBP.

Confirmatory Factor Analysis of Three Versions of the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS-42, DASS-21, and DASS-12) in Polish Adults

Background: The Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS) are designed to identify quickly and differentiate between the symptoms of depression and anxiety in the non-clinical population. Different versions (original and short) were validated in many cultures. Nevertheless, there are no data of factorial validity of the different versions of this scale in Polish culture. Thus, the aim of this study was to evaluate the factor structure using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and internal consistency of DASS-42 (original version) and two short versions (DASS-21 items and DASS-12 items) in the Polish population.Methods: The DASS-42 was administered to a non-clinical sample, broadly representative of the general Polish adult population (n = 1,021) in terms of demographic variables. The DASS-21 and DASS-12 version used in this study comprise seven and four items from each of the following corresponding three subscales of the Polish version of DASS-42.Results: There were two models that fitted best for DASS-42: (a) modified three correlated factors (depression, anxiety, and stress) with cross-loadings and (b) second order (general factor of psychological distress) and three factors with cross-loadings. There were also two models that fitted best for DASS-21 and DASS-12: (a) modified three correlated factors (depression, anxiety, and stress) and (b) second order (general factor of psychological distress) and three factors.Conclusions: All three versions of DASS appear to have an acceptable factorial structure. However, the shorter versions (DASS-21 and DASS-12) may be more feasible to use in general medical practice and also be less burdensome to participants.

The differences between the Connor–Davidson Resilience Scale and the Brief Resilience Scale When Assessing Resilience: Confirmatory Factor Analysis and Predictive Effects

The Connor&ndash;Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC) and the Brief Resilience Scale (BRS) are two widely used scales to measure resilience. Although both scales seek to assess an individual&rsquo;s ability to recover from and adapt to disruptions or stressful events, they may capture different aspects of resilience. While the CD-RISC focuses on resources that can help individuals recover from and adapt to disruptions or stressful events, the BRS directly measures one&rsquo;s ability to bounce back or be resilient. The aim of this study is to empirically examine the differences between the CD-RISC and the BRS. Two samples (n = 202, 246) consisting of undergraduate students from Taiwan were used. The results of confirmatory factor analysis show that the CD-RISC and the BRS are highly correlated but still distinct. The results of regression analyses show that the CD-RISC and the BRS have unique predictive effects on depression and life satisfaction. The research findings suggest that the CD-RISC and the BRS capture different aspects of resilience. For future research on resilience, researchers should pay attention to the differences between these scales and choose the one that most closely fits their research purpose.