ArticleBMC psychiatry2018
Psychometric properties and measurement invariance of the Beck hopelessness scale (BHS): results from a German representative population sample.
Article in BMC psychiatry, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 29 papers.
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Who cites it
29 citing papers in PubMed.
- Effects of a digital self-efficacy training in stressed university students: A randomized controlled trial.PloS one · 2024Trial
- Latent Profile Analysis Reveals Four Distinct Adolescent Mental Health Patterns for Targeted School Interventions.Child psychiatry and human development · 2026Article
- Psychometric properties of the Beck Hopelessness Scale in Ecuadorian older adults: a comparative analysis of one-factor, two-factor, and three-factor models.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- Construction and validation of the ultra-short version of the Parenting Scale (PS-4).Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- Exploring the Impact of the Caring Contacts Intervention on the Stress and Distress of Veterans and Service Members: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial.JMIR research protocols · 2025Article
- The EmpkinS-EKSpression Reappraisal Training Augmented With Kinesthesia in Depression: One-Armed Feasibility Study.JMIR formative research · 2025Article
- Examining Gender Differences in Aggression as a Predictor of Anxiety, Depression, and Suicide in a Cross-Sectional French Sample.Health science reports · 2025Article
- Psychometric evaluation and updated community norms of the WHO-5 well-being index, based on a representative German sample.Frontiers in psychology · 2025Article
- Psychometric evaluation and community norms of the GAD-7, based on a representative German sample.Frontiers in psychology · 2025Article
- Clinical characteristics of depressed children and adolescents with and without suicidal thoughts and behavior: a cross-sectional study.Frontiers in child and adolescent psychiatry · 2025Article
- Facing depression: evaluating the efficacy of the EmpkinS-EKSpression reappraisal training augmented with facial expressions - protocol of a randomized controlled trial.BMC psychiatry · 2024Article
- Development and Initial Validation of Measures of Proximal Stigmas and Experiences of Discrimination for Minor Attracted People.Archives of sexual behavior · 2024Article
- A unidimensional short form of the Beck Hopelessness Scale (BHS-7) derived using item response theory.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Psychometric evaluation and community norms of the PHQ-9, based on a representative German sample.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2024Article
- Determining Hopelessness Levels and Related Factors in Veterinary Students.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Investigating Relationships Among Self-Efficacy, Mood, and Anxiety Using Digital Technologies: Randomized Controlled Trial.JMIR formative research · 2023Article
- The General Hopelessness Scale: Development of a measure of hopelessness for non-clinical samples.PloS one · 2023Review
- Psychometric functioning, measurement invariance, and external associations of the Relationship Assessment Scale in a sample of Polish Adults.Scientific reports · 2022Article
- Deriving Meaning from Chaos: The Mediating Role of the Sense of Coherence in the Serial Relationships among Fear of COVID-19, Indices of Psychological Distress, and Life Satisfaction.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- Feasibility, Acceptability and Preliminary Efficacy of Dialectical Behavior Therapy for Autistic Adults without Intellectual Disability: A Mixed Methods Study.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2022Article
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4 authors.
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Abstract
backgroundThe Beck Hopelessness Scale (BHS) has been the most frequently used instrument for the measurement of hopelessness in the past 40 years. Only recently has it officially been translated into German. The psychometric properties and factor structure of the BHS have been cause for intensive debate in the past.
methodsBased on a representative sample of the German population (N = 2450) item analysis including item sensitivity, item-total correlation and item difficulty was performed. Confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) for several factor solutions from the literature were performed. Multiple group factor analysis was performed to assess measurement invariance. Construct validity was assessed via the replication of well-established correlations with concurrently assessed measures.
resultsMost items exhibited adequate properties. Items #4, #8 and #13 exhibited poor item characteristics- each of these items had previously received negative evaluations in international studies. A one-dimensional factor solution, favorable for the calculation and interpretation of a sum score, was regarded as adequate. A bi-factor model with one content factor and two method factors (defined by positive/negative item coding) resulted in an excellent model fit. Cronbach's alpha in the current sample was .87. Hopelessness, as measured by the BHS, significantly correlated in the expected direction with suicidal ideation (r = .36), depression (r = .53) and life satisfaction (r = -.53). Strict measurement invariance could be established regarding gender and depression status. Due to limited research regarding the interpretation of fit indices with dichotomous data, interpretation of CFA results needs to remain tentative.
conclusionThe BHS is a valid measure of hopelessness in various subgroups of the general population. Future research could aim at replicating these findings using item response theory and cross-cultural samples. A one-dimensional bi-factor model seems appropriate even in a non-clinical population.
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