Worrall, S; Christiansen, P; Khalil, A; Silverio, SA; Fallon, V
(2024)
Measurement invariance analysis of the Postpartum Specific Anxiety Scale - Research Short Form in mothers of premature and term infants.
BMC Res Notes, 17 (1).
p. 75.
ISSN 1756-0500
https://doi.org/10.1186/s13104-024-06746-3
SGUL Authors: Khalil, Asma
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Mothers of premature infants are more likely to develop anxiety during the first postpartum year than mothers of term infants. However, commonly used measures of anxiety were developed for general adult populations and may produce spurious, over-inflated scores when used in a postpartum context. Although perinatal-specific tools such as the Postpartum Specific Anxiety Scale [PSAS] offer a promising alternative form of measurement, it is not clear whether the measure performs similarly in mothers of premature infants as it does in mothers of term infants. The objective of the current study was to identify whether items on the Postpartum Specific Anxiety Scale - Research Short Form (PSAS-RSF) are being interpreted in the same manner in mothers of term infants and mothers of premature infants. Mothers (N = 320) participated in an international on-line survey between February 2022 and March 2023 (n = 160 mothers of premature infants, n = 160 mothers of term infants) where they completed the PSAS-RSF. Data were analysed using a measurement invariance analysis to assess whether constructs of the PSAS-RSF are performing in a similar manner across the two groups. RESULTS: Whilst the PSAS-RSF achieved configural invariance and so retains its four-factor structure, metric invariance was not reached and so items are being interpreted differently in mothers of premature infants. Items concerning infant-separation, finance, and anxieties surrounding infant health are potentially problematic. Future research must now modify the PSAS-RSF for specific use in mothers of premature infants, to ensure measurement of anxiety in this population is valid.
Item Type: |
Article
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Additional Information: |
© The Author(s) 2024. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated in a credit line to the data. |
Keywords: |
Gestational age, Measurement invariance, Postpartum anxiety, Preterm birth, Psychometric measurement, Infant, Newborn, Infant, Female, Pregnancy, Adult, Humans, Mothers, Postpartum Period, Infant, Premature, Anxiety, Anxiety Disorders, Humans, Anxiety, Mothers, Anxiety Disorders, Postpartum Period, Pregnancy, Adult, Infant, Infant, Newborn, Infant, Premature, Female, 0601 Biochemistry and Cell Biology, 1199 Other Medical and Health Sciences, Bioinformatics |
Journal or Publication Title: |
BMC Res Notes |
ISSN: |
1756-0500 |
Language: |
eng |
Dates: |
Date | Event |
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14 March 2024 | Published | 8 March 2024 | Accepted |
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Publisher License: |
Creative Commons: Attribution 4.0 |
PubMed ID: |
38486271 |
![](http://static.pubmed.gov/portal/portal3rc.fcgi/2745237/img/27842) |
Go to PubMed abstract |
URI: |
https://openaccess.sgul.ac.uk/id/eprint/116385 |
Publisher's version: |
https://doi.org/10.1186/s13104-024-06746-3 |
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