Confirmation of a four-factor structure of the Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire among undergraduate students

Abstract

Objective Although several exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses have supported the initially proposed factor structure of the Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire (SPQ) in which its nine subscales are grouped into cognitive-perceptual, interpersonal, and disorganized domains, others have revealed different latent structures. This study determined the best-fitting factor structure from among five models that have been proposed in the literature, as well as five additional hierarchically related models.Method Undergraduate college students (n=825) completed the SPQ as well as the Perceptual Aberration Scale (PAS) and the Revised Social Anhedonia Scale (SAS). Confirmatory factor analyses involving the nine SPQ subscales were conducted using the Linear Structural RelationsProgram (LISREL 8.72).Results The best fitting model was a previously described 4-factor model including cognitiveperceptual, paranoid, negative, and disorganized domains. Correlations between the derived SPQ domains and the PAS score ranged r=.26-.39, and correlations between the SPQ domains and the SAS ranged r=.07-.41. ConclusionsThe present findings support a 4-factor model over the standard 3-factor model that is typically used to derive SPQ subscale scores. The four derived domains are minimally to moderately correlated with other measures of psychosis-proneness.

Associations between schizotypy and belief in conspiracist ideation

“…Each 'yes' response counts as one point and nine subscale scores were computed as the total score for all items associated with each subscale. Table 1 shows Cronbach's alpha coefficients for the nine subscales in the present sample, which is in line with the findings of Compton et al (2009). Scores for domains were derived by the summation of subscale scores.…”

“…Thus, Swami et al (2013) Bruder et al, 2013;Darwin et al, 2011). There are, however, questions concerning the reliability of the SPQ-B (Axelrod, Grilo, Sanislow, & McGlashan, 2001), as well as the factorial validity of the three-factor model of schizotypy (Compton, Goulding, Bakeman, & McClure-Tone, 2009). Moreover, use of domain-level dimensions may obscure associations between conspiracist ideation and lower-level schizotypal traits.…”

Quantitative electroencephalography as a biomarker for proneness toward developing psychosis

“…These broadly correspond to the positive, disorganised and negative dimensions of schizophrenia (SZ) respectively (Compton et al, 2009;Fonseca-Pedrero et al, 2011;Nelson et al, 2013). The fully dimensional approach posits that schizotypal traits in the healthy population and SZ are fundamentally linked (Claridge and Beech, 1995;Nelson et al, 2013).…”

Experiencias esquizotípicas en la adolescencia: propiedades psicométricas del Schizotypal Personality Questionnarie-Child

“…A resultados similares llegaron Raine et al (2011) cuando comprobaron la estructura del SPQ-C en una muestra representativa de adolescentes no clínicos. Estos datos apuntan hacia una estructura tripartita de la esquizotipia, si bien es cierto que puede variar en función del instrumento de medida, de la muestra y de la técnica estadística utilizada (Cohen et al, 2010;Compton et al, 2009).…”

“…Concretamente, utilizando el SPQ o SPQ-B, el modelo tridimensional de Raine et al (1994) ha sido ampliamente replicado, y se muestra consistente a través de los estudios (Fonseca-Pedrero, Paino, Lemos-Giráldez, Sierra-Baigrie y Fossati, Raine, Carretta, Leonardi y Maffei, 2003;Wuthrich y Bates, 2006). Dicho modelo se concreta en tres dimensiones de esquizotipia, a saber, Positiva (Cognitivo-Perceptual), Interpersonal (Negativa) y de Desorganización; no obstante, es igualmente cierto que otros estudios han encontrados dos, tres, cuatro o incluso más dimensiones (Cohen, Matthews, Najolia y Brown, 2010;Compton, Goulding, Bakeman y McClure-Tone, 2009;Fonseca-Pedrero et al, 2014). Utilizando el SPQ-C, se ha hallado que el modelo tridimensional de Raine et al (1994) fue el que mejores índices de bondad de ajuste presentó en comparación con el resto de los modelos hipotéticos sometidos a prueba .…”