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The Psychological Mindedness Scale: Factor structure, convergent validity and gender in a non‐psychiatric sample
Author(s) -
Shill Merton A.,
Lumley Mark A.
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
psychology and psychotherapy: theory, research and practice
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.102
H-Index - 62
eISSN - 2044-8341
pISSN - 1476-0835
DOI - 10.1348/147608302169607
Subject(s) - alexithymia , psychology , toronto alexithymia scale , convergent validity , feeling , scale (ratio) , openness to experience , confirmatory factor analysis , clinical psychology , psychometrics , social psychology , structural equation modeling , internal consistency , statistics , physics , mathematics , quantum mechanics
Although the concept of psycholoical mindedness (PM) originated in the psychoanalytic literature, its use has been expanding beyond the realm of assessing suitability for, or psychic change following, psychotherapy or psychoanalysis. For example, since PM bespeaks a capacity to tolerate psychological conflict and stress intrapsychically rather than by regressive means of conflict management or resolution such as somatization, its role, like that of alexithymia, in the genesis of psychosomatic illness is becoming evident. The Psychological Mindedness Scale (PMS), a 45‐item self‐report instrument intended to measure PM, was administered to a non‐clinical sample of 397 undergraduates to assess the stability of its previously reported item‐factor loadings and factor structure. Two main factors emerged, viz. Belief in the benefits of discussing one's problems and Access to feelings . Lower‐order factors were Willingness to discuss problems with others, Interest in meaning and motivation of own and others' behaviour and Openness to change . Convergent validity of the PMS was alsodemonstrated by the negative correlations obtained between its total and factor/subscale scores with those of the Toronto Alexithymia Scale. Thef PMS needs further development to increase the congruence between itsfactor structure and the concept of PM. Females were also found to be more psychologically minded than males. The implications of these findings and the potential uses of this scale are discussed.