The assessment of positive dimension of the psychosis phenotype in college students

Résumé

The Wisconsin Schizotypy Scales are one of the most used measuring instruments for the assessment of psychometric risk for psychosis. The main goal of the present study was to analyze the reliability of the scores and to provide new sources of validity evidence for the brief version of the Magical Ideation Scale (MIS-B) and the Perceptual Aberration Scale (PAS-B). The final sample was comprised of a total of 1349 university students divided into two subsamples (n1 = 710; M = 19.8 years; n2 = 639; M = 21.2 years). Results show that both measurement instruments have adequate psychometric properties under Classical Test Theory and Item Response Theory. Internal structure analysis of MIS-B and PAS-B, through exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, yielded an essentially one-dimensional solution. Cronbach's alpha coefficient for the total score of MIS-B ranged between 0.86 and 0.87, whereas for the PAS-B it ranged between 0.78 and 0.89. A total of 5 items showed a differential functioning for sex. The results indicate that the MIS-B and PAS-B are brief measurement instruments with adequate psychometric properties for the assessment of the positive dimension of the psychosis phenotype and could be used as screening tools in the detection of individuals at risk for psychosis in the general population. © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.