Zeitschrift für Psychologie und Psychotherapie
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Abstrakt

Psychometric Properties of the Experiences in Close Relationship Scale (Short Form) with Pakistani Adolescents

Somia Imran*, Angus MacBeth, Ethel Quayle, Stella W.Y. Chan

Objective: Despite the increased interest globally in youth mental health, there is a lack of culturally-adapted psychometric measures for use with adolescents within the South Asian context in general, and Pakistan specifically. To address this gap one of the most efficient and cost effective methodological developments is to translate and validate psychometrically sound measures rather than developing indigenous scales.

Method: This study validated the Experiences in Close Relationship Scale-12 (ECR-12), in a sample of Pakistani adolescents, using an Urdu translation. The ECR-12, Relationship Questionnaire (RQ), the Rosenberg`s Self-Esteem Scale (RSES), and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) were administered to 400 adolescents aged 12-18 years from three schools in Rawalpindi, Pakistan. Cronbach’s alphas, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and correlations were assessed.

Results: High Cronbach-alphas across scales illustrated good reliability. A 2-factor model for the ECR-12 emerged, with adequate goodness-of-fit after removing the influence of response sets using method factors. ECR-12 showed factor specific significant associations with RQ attachment patterns, establishing both convergent and discriminant validity. Positive associations between ECR-12 and HADS scores, and ECR-12`s negative association with RSES scores demonstrate construct validity.

Conclusion: This psychometric validation study demonstrates utility of the Urdu translation of the ECR-12 for youth mental health research in transcultural settings.