A previous study found a variety of unusual sexual interests to cluster in a five-factor structure, namely submission/masochism, forbidden sexual activities, dominance / sadism, mysophilia, and fetishism (Schippers et al., 2021). The current study was an empirical replication to examine whether these findings generalized to a representative population sample. An online, anonymous sample (N = 256) representative of the Dutch adult male population rated 32 unusual sexual interests on a scale from 1 (very unappealing) to 7 (very appealing). An exploratory factor analysis assessed whether similar factors would emerge as in the original study. A subsequent confirmatory factor analysis served to confirm the factor structure. Four slightly different factors of sexual interest were found: extreme, illegal and mysophilic sexual activities; light BDSM without real pain or suffering; heavy BDSM that may include pain or suffering; and illegal but lower-sentenced and fetishistic sexual activities. The model fit was acceptable. The representative replication sample was more sexually conservative and showed less sexual engagement than the original convenience sample. On a fundamental level, sexual interest in light BDSM activities and extreme, forbidden, and mysophilic activities seem to be relatively separate constructs.
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The assumptions of the model for factor analysis do not exclude a class of indeterminate covariances between factors and error variables (Grayson, 2003). The construction of all factors of the model for factor analysis is generalized to incorporate indeterminate factor-error covariances. A necessary and sufficient condition is given for indeterminate factor-error covariances to be arbitrarily small, for mean square convergence of the regression predictor of factor scores, and for the existence of a unique determinate factor and error variable. The determinate factor and error variable are uncorrelated and satisfy the defining assumptions of factor analysis. Several examples are given to illustrate the results.
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A construction method is given for all factors that satisfy the assumptions of the model for factor analysis, including partially determined factors where certain error variances are zero. Various criteria for the seriousness of indeterminacy are related. It is shown that B. F. Green's (1976) conjecture holds: For a linear factor predictor the mean squared error of prediction is constant over all possible factors. A simple and general geometric interpretation of factor indeterminacy is given on the basis of the distance between multiple factors. It is illustrated that variable elimination can have a large effect on the seriousness of factor indeterminacy. A simulation study reveals that if the mean square error of factor prediction equals .5, then two thirds of the persons are "correctly" selected by the best linear factor predictor. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2009 APA, all rights reserved)
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If the ratio m/p tends to zero, where m is the number of factors m and p the number of observable variables, then the inverse diagonal element of the inverted observable covariance matrix (σ pjj) -1 tends to the corresponding unique variance ψ jj for almost all of these (Guttman, 1956). If the smallest singular value of the loadings matrix from Common Factor Analysis tends to infinity as p increases, then m/p tends to zero. The same condition is necessary and sufficient for (σ pjj) -1 to tend to ψ jj for all of these. Several related conditions are discussed. © 2006 The Psychometric Society.
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Background: The aim of this study is to validate a newly developed nurses' self-efficacy sources inventory. We test the validity of a five-dimensional model of sources of self-efficacy, which we contrast with the traditional four-dimensional model based on Bandura's theoretical concepts. Methods: Confirmatory factor analysis was used in the development of the newly developed self-efficacy measure. Model fit was evaluated based upon commonly recommended goodness-of-fit indices, including the χ2 of the model fit, the Root Mean Square Error of approximation (RMSEA), the Tucker-Lewis Index (TLI), the Standardized Root Mean Square Residual (SRMR), and the Bayesian Information Criterion (BIC). Results: All 22 items of the newly developed five-factor sources of self-efficacy have high factor loadings (range .40-.80). Structural equation modeling showed that a five-factor model is favoured over the four-factor model. Conclusions and implications: Results of this study show that differentiation of the vicarious experience source into a peer- and expert based source reflects better how nursing students develop self-efficacy beliefs. This has implications for clinical learning environments: a better and differentiated use of self-efficacy sources can stimulate the professional development of nursing students.
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Objective: To examine the underlying factor structure and psychometric properties of the Assessment of Self-management in Anxiety and Depression (ASAD) questionnaire, which was specifically designed for patients with (chronic) anxiety and depressive disorders. Moreover, this study assesses whether the number of items in the ASAD can be reduced without significantly reducing its precision. Methods: The ASAD questionnaire was completed by 171 participants across two samples: one sample comprised patients with residual anxiety or depressive symptoms, while the other consisted of patients who have been formally diagnosed with a chronic anxiety or depressive disorder. All participants had previously undergone treatment. Both exploratory (EFA) and confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) were conducted. Internal consistency and test–retest reliability were also assessed. Results: Both EFA and CFA indicated three solid factors: Seeking support, Daily life strategies and Taking ownership [Comparative Fit Index = 0.80, Tucker Lewis Index = 0.78, Root Mean Square Error of Approximation = 0.09 (CI 0.08–1.00), Standardized Root Mean Square Residual = 0.09 ($2 = 439.35, df = 168)]. The ASAD was thus reduced from 45 items to 21 items, which resulted in the ASAD-Short Form (SF). All sub-scales had a high level of internal consistency (> a = 0.75) and test–retest reliability (ICC > 0.75). Discussion: The first statistical evaluation of the ASAD indicated a high level of internal consistency and test–retest reliability, and identified three distinctive factors. This could aid patients and professionals’ assessment of types of self-management used by the patient. Given that this study indicated that the 21-item ASAD-SF is appropriate, this version should be further explored and validated among a sample of patients with (chronic or partially remitted) anxiety and depressive disorders. Alongside this, to increase generalizability, more studies are required to examine the English version of the ASAD within other settings and countries.
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Estimation of the factor model by unweighted least squares (ULS) is distribution free, yields consistent estimates, and is computationally fast if the Minimum Residuals (MinRes) algorithm is employed. MinRes algorithms produce a converging sequence of monotonically decreasing ULS function values. Various suggestions for algorithms of the MinRes type are made for confirmatory as well as for exploratory factor analysis. These suggestions include the implementation of inequality constraints and the prevention of Heywood cases. A simulation study, comparing the bootstrap standard deviations for the parameters with the standard errors from maximum likelihood, indicates that these are virtually equal when the score vectors are sampled from the normal distribution. Two empirical examples demonstrate the usefulness of constrained exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis by ULS used in conjunction with the bootstrap method.
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Sufficient conditions for mean square convergence of factor predictors in common factor analysis are given by Guttman, by Williams, and by Schneeweiss and Mathes. These conditions do not hold for confirmatory factor analysis or when an error variance equals zero (Heywood cases). Two sufficient conditions are given for the three basic factor predictors and a predictor from rotated principal components analysis to converge to the factors of the model for confirmatory factor analysis, including Heywood cases. For certain model specifications the conditions are necessary. The conditions are sufficient for the existence of a unique true factor. A geometric interpretation is given for factor indeterminacy and mean square convergence of best linear factor prediction.
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We show how to estimate a Cronbach's alpha reliability coefficient in Stata after running a principal component or factor analysis. Alpha evaluates to what extent items measure the same underlying content when the items are combined into a scale or used for latent variable. Stata allows for testing the reliability coefficient (alpha) of a scale only when all items receive homogenous weights. We present a user-written program that computes reliability coefficients when implementation of principal component or factor analysis shows heterogeneous item loadings. We use data on management practices from Bloom and Van Reenen (2010) to explain how to implement and interpret the adjusted internal consistency measure using afa.
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BACKGROUND: The reliability and validity of the subjective component of the Dutch Objective Burden Inventory (DOBI) are unknown.OBJECTIVE: The validity and reliability of the subjective component of the DOBI were examined in caregivers of individuals with heart failure, using the original 38- and a 24-item version.METHODS: In an online cross-sectional investigation, confirmatory factor analysis was used to examine factorial validity. In examining convergent validity, corrected item-dimension correlations assessed item performance and associations between subjective subscale scores and the Bakas Caregiving Outcomes Scale. Cronbach's α examined internal consistency.RESULTS: The original 4-factor solution was retained and both the original and shorter versions of the subjective component of the DOBI supported adequate construct validity and internal consistency.CONCLUSIONS: Both the 38- and 24-item forms of the subjective DOBI supported construct validity and reliability. Further studies examining the usefulness of both versions are needed in carers of individuals with more severe HF.
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