ali delavar; masoud baratian; hosey bajami; masumeh masudian
Volume 3, Issue 8 , July 2012, Pages 1-38
Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to standardize and normalize the health concerns questionnaire-54 (HCQ-54) to assess the health concerns of Iranian undergraduates at the state-run universities in Tehran, including University of Tehran, Tarbiat Mo'allem University, Allameh Tabataba'i University, Shahid Beheshti ...
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The purpose of this paper is to standardize and normalize the health concerns questionnaire-54 (HCQ-54) to assess the health concerns of Iranian undergraduates at the state-run universities in Tehran, including University of Tehran, Tarbiat Mo'allem University, Allameh Tabataba'i University, Shahid Beheshti University, Sharif University of Technology and Amir Kabir University of Technology. To this aim, 2000 undergraduates were selected using the random multi-stage sampling method. The general reliability of the scale and its subscales was computed through internal consistency. The results indicated excellent internal consistency (general Cronbach's alpha coefficient = 0.803, somatic concerns = 0.894, mental concerns = 0.939, social concerns = 0.646) and proved statistically satisfactory. Moreover, the construct validity of the scale was investigated through factor analysis of principal components with varimax rotation, after which a factor emerged that accounted for 28.843% of the total variance of the scale. The cutoff point of the study was 62 with sensitivity and specificity standing at 80% and 72%, respectively. The independent t-test showed no significant difference between male and female students on the HCQ-54 subscales.
mahnaz ali akbari dehkordi; farhad shaghaghi; ali asghar kako juibari; mARYAM ZARE; zeynab shayghian; fatemeh amir abadi; faegheh khaleghi delavar; hoseynieh shahryari
Volume 3, Issue 8 , July 2012, Pages 39-64
Abstract
The fact that childhood temperament is one of the most important determinants of adults' emotional and psychological disorders makes early assessment of difficult and problematic temperament necessary. Moreover, appropriate tools are needed to attain this objective. The present study seeks to evaluate ...
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The fact that childhood temperament is one of the most important determinants of adults' emotional and psychological disorders makes early assessment of difficult and problematic temperament necessary. Moreover, appropriate tools are needed to attain this objective. The present study seeks to evaluate the psychometric characteristics of ps-TCI in the Iranian preschoolers. A statistical sample of 200 children from five kindergartens in Shahriar was randomly selected through the process of cluster sampling, and their temperament and personality were tested by 18 kindergarten teachers using the Cloninger’s Preschool Temperament and Character Inventory. After fourteen days, the process was repeated, and its validity and reliability were assessed. The reliability was calculated by test-retest, spilt-half and Cronbach's alpha coefficient as 0.89, 0.75 and 0.82, respectively. The validity of the inventory was also investigated by convergent validity and exploratory factor analysis. The results from factor analysis and varimax rotation method yielded seven factors, including cooperativeness, harm- avoidance, novelty-seeking, reward-dependence, persistence, self- direction and self-transcendence which accounted for 59.19% of the total variance. The convergent validity was confirmed by computing a correlation coefficient between the subscales together and with total scale, which was significant between 0.62 and 0.71 (p<0.01). In conclusion, Cloninger’s preschool Temperament and Character Inventory generally proved to be a valid and reliable tool in evaluating the temperaments of the Iranian preschoolers.
hasan mohammad thehrani; abdollah shafi abadi; mohammad reza falsafi nejhad; simin hoseynian
Volume 3, Issue 8 , July 2012, Pages 65-84
Abstract
Many people have difficulty making career decisions. Dysfunctional thinking about themselves and their decision-making abilities has been shown to contribute to indecision, anxiety, and depression, which may in turn inhibit career development. Based on cognitive information processing (CLP) approach, ...
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Many people have difficulty making career decisions. Dysfunctional thinking about themselves and their decision-making abilities has been shown to contribute to indecision, anxiety, and depression, which may in turn inhibit career development. Based on cognitive information processing (CLP) approach, evaluation and intervention, the Career Thought Inventory (CTI) (Sampson, Peterson, Lenz, Reardon, & Saunders, 1996/1998) is provided to improve the quality of decision-making. The purpose of this study is to determine the psychometric properties of CTI among the students of Islamic Azad University of Kerman. First, the original form of CTI was translated into Persian and then back into English to understand the questions correctly and compare the translated form to the original one. 520 university students (322 females and 198 males) were selected by multi-stage cluster sampling. Test- retest and Cronbach's alpha coefficient were used to determine the reliability of the test while factor analysis, varimax rotations, content, construct, convergent and criterion validity were used to determine its validity. The Cronbach's alpha coefficient and test-retest methods calculated scale reliability as 0.93, total score as 0.82, DMC as 0.88 and 0.77, CA as 0.77 and 0.71, and EC as 0.59 and 0.65. Significant correlations between each item and the total score indicated internal consistency. Factor analysis of data and Scree plot showed three factors. Correlations among CTI scales and CIP content dimensions confirmed the content validity of the scale. The results showed that CTI and its subscales (DMC, CA, and EC) have acceptable validity and reliability and can be used to determine dysfunctional career thoughts. They also demonstrated that there were significant differences between single and married as well as employed and unemployed students (p<0/01), but no significant difference between female and male students (p>0/05).
neda badaghi; nur ali farokhi; hasan asad zadeh
Volume 3, Issue 8 , July 2012, Pages 85-108
Abstract
The present study aims to prepare and standardize a teenagers' gender identity questionnaire for 15-18 year-old teenagers of Tehran city. The questionnaire included 91 questions measuring four scales, including successful identity, premature identity, serotinous identity and troubled identity. 580 high-school ...
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The present study aims to prepare and standardize a teenagers' gender identity questionnaire for 15-18 year-old teenagers of Tehran city. The questionnaire included 91 questions measuring four scales, including successful identity, premature identity, serotinous identity and troubled identity. 580 high-school students (454 females and 126 males) of Tehran city in the school year 2010-2011 were randomly selected as the sample volume. The construct validity of the questionnaire was assessed by factor analysis of main components and varimax rotation, and four factors were derived from the questionnaire. Moreover, Bennion and Adams' identity status measurement questionnaire and Bem's sex role questionnaire were used to measure the criterion validity of teenager's gender identity questionnaire. The validity coefficient of the questionnaire and its scales was determined by Cronbach's alpha coefficient to fluctuate between 0.73 and 0.82. After the marks received by male and female students were compared, the questionnaire norms for each scale were calculated and recoded on the basis of T and Z scaled marks.
mirza hasan hoseyni; romina farhadi nahad
Volume 3, Issue 8 , July 2012, Pages 109-132
Abstract
A positive brand image could greatly influence the decision to attend a university and is, thus, given more significance by the universities around the word. However, there is no unanimity among the researchers regarding the measurement and classification of university image. Therefore, the university ...
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A positive brand image could greatly influence the decision to attend a university and is, thus, given more significance by the universities around the word. However, there is no unanimity among the researchers regarding the measurement and classification of university image. Therefore, the university brand image is suggested to be studied as a research problem in the related context. The purpose of this study is to identify the appropriate scales to measure the brand image of Payame Noor University. The free- association method was, thus, adopted to extract the brand image of the university from the students' self-explicated perceptions. The analysis of the results led to the identification of 13 attributes of Payame Noor University brand image. The identified scales would provide the university officials with the opportunity to compare the brand image of their respective university with that of other universities and identify their strengths and weaknesses in order to develop a competitive strategy.
zahra naghsh; azam moghadam
Volume 3, Issue 8 , July 2012, Pages 133-154
Abstract
In traditional approaches, single-level statistical models were generally used to analyze IEA data. In hierarchical linear models, each level is, however, introduced by its sub-model, and the variables' interrelations are explained in each specified level. The way the variables affect the existent relations ...
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In traditional approaches, single-level statistical models were generally used to analyze IEA data. In hierarchical linear models, each level is, however, introduced by its sub-model, and the variables' interrelations are explained in each specified level. The way the variables affect the existent relations in other levels is also determined. The main purpose of this paper is to compare multi-level modeling and single-level analysis techniques and underline the importance of applying the former in analyzing the data extracted from the TIMSS 2007 questionnaires completed by the eighth graders. Due to their nature, the IEA data were analyzed by HLM software as the students were nested within classes, classes within schools, and schools within countries. In the single-level analysis, there was a significant relationship between self- concept, attitude and evaluation at 0.001 level with mathematics achievement (0.48, 0.296 and 0.134, respectively). Furthermore, the results of two-level analysis by one-way ANOVA with random effects showed that these three variables (self-concept, attitude and evaluation) explained 30.10% and 47% of mathematics achievement variance at student and school levels, respectively. The different results of these two analyses demonstrated the importance of using multi-level analyses for nested data like TIMSS. Regarding the nested nature of TIMSS data and the multi-level method used to extract them, the application of multi-level modeling techniques is recommended to obtain more detailed data on the factors influencing the students' achievement.
khadiheh fouladvand; mehri soltani; ali fathi ashtiani; zahra soaee
Volume 3, Issue 8 , July 2012, Pages 155-182
Abstract
This study is an attempt to examine the psychometric properties of the academic engagement scale formulated by Tinio in 2009. The academic engagement scale was administered to a sample volume of 358 students who were randomly selected thorough the process of cluster sampling. The construct validity, ...
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This study is an attempt to examine the psychometric properties of the academic engagement scale formulated by Tinio in 2009. The academic engagement scale was administered to a sample volume of 358 students who were randomly selected thorough the process of cluster sampling. The construct validity, convergent validity and internal consistency of the scale were calculated by exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, Pearson's product-moment correlation coefficient and Cronbach’s alpha coefficient. The results of principle component analysis and oblique rotation demonstrated that the academic engagement scale had three factors. The goodness of fit indices of confirmatory factor analysis also confirmed the three factors. Moreover, the multidimensional scales of academic engagement scale were shown to be an acceptable measurement model in this sample. The correlation coefficients between academic engagement subscales were positive and significant (p<0.05), which confirmed the convergent validity of the scale. Regarding the internal consistency, the alpha coefficient was calculated as 0.96, behavioral engagement as 0.90, emotional engagement as 0.92 and cognitive engagement as 0.88 of the total scale. In conclusion, Tinio's scale was proved to be a valid and reliable instrument for measuring THE academic engagement of the Iranian students.
