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A Self-Focused Attention Scale: Factor Structure and Psychometric Properties

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Abstract

The psychometric properties of a Self-Focused Attention Scale (SFAS) were examined in Greek-born immigrants and Anglo-Australians. Factor analysis on SFAS items yielded four factors, interpretable as those obtained in previous research despite differences in age between the current sample and previous samples employed in SFA research. Analyses supported the distinctions between private and public self and body consciousness. All SFAS subscales, which were individually reliable, were inter-correlated, yielding a satisfactory overall SFAS reliability. Construct validity was indicated by significant correlations with measures of psychopathology. The scale was not significantly correlated with indicators of social desirability. The SFAS may be useful in future work examining private and public aspects of self and body consciousness in community dwelling adults.

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Notes

  1. Principal components analyses were conducted for the Greek and Anglo samples separately. For the two groups, the same factors were replicated except that the amount of variance contributed by each factor differed and some items loaded differently. These results may have been obtained due to the small samples sizes of the individual Greek and Anglo groups.

  2. We would like to acknowledge the anonymous reviewers for suggesting that the scale is currently satisfactory as a research instrument rather than a clinical instrument based on the reliability scores obtained.

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Correspondence to Litza A. Kiropoulos.

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Kiropoulos, L.A., Klimidis, S. A Self-Focused Attention Scale: Factor Structure and Psychometric Properties. Cogn Ther Res 30, 297–306 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10608-006-9049-2

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