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The Conceptualisation and Development of a Bi-Directional Measure of Changes in Being Following Adversity

Sub-Department of Clinical Health Psychology, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, sydhiskey{at}hotmail.com

Nicholas A. Troop

Department of Health Psychology, London Metropolitan University, UK

Stephen Joseph

Department of Clinical Psychology, Universities of Coventry and Warwick, UK

The conceptualisation and initial psychometric development of a measure of bi-directional phenomenological change following severely stressful and traumatic life events is detailed. Measure items were derived from a range of sources, most notably a series of focus group interviews (Study One). A grounded theory analysis of this data suggested that the collective discourse could be classified in terms of the primary mode of experiencing change. An exploratory factor analysis of items derived from Study One, based on data drawn from a large-scale Internet survey (Study Two), supported this view and produced factors indicative of bi-directional changes in ‘physiological’, ‘social’, ‘personal’ and ‘existential’ ways of being. The resulting 20-item measure demonstrated acceptable psychometric properties and awaits further development.

Key Words: Adversity • phenomenology • questionnaire development • semantic differential • bi-directional

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