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Purpose-in-Life Test: Comparison of the Main Models in Patients with Mental Disorders

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 June 2017

Joaquín García-Alandete ,
José H. Marco  and
Sandra Pérez
Joaquín García-Alandete*
Affiliation:
Universidad Católica de Valencia San Vicente Mártir (Spain)
José H. Marco
Affiliation:
Universidad Católica de Valencia San Vicente Mártir (Spain)
Sandra Pérez
Affiliation:
Universidad Católica de Valencia San Vicente Mártir (Spain)
*
*Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Joaquín García-Alandete. Universidad Católica de Valencia San Vicente Mártir. Valencia (Spain). Phone: +34–963637412. Fax: +34–963919827. E-mail: ximo.garcia@ucv.es
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Abstract

The aim of this study was to compare the main proposed models for the Purpose-In-Life Test, a scale for assessing meaning in life, in 229 Spanish patients with mental disorders (195 females and 34 males, aged 13–68, M = 34.43, SD = 12.19). Confirmatory factor-analytic procedures showed that the original model of the Purpose-In-Life Test, a 20-item unidimensional scale, obtained a better fit than the other analyzed models, SBχ2(df) = 326.27(170), SBχ2/df = 1.92, TLI = .93, CFI = .94, IFI = .94, RMSEA = .063 (90% CI [.053, .074]), CAIC = –767.46, as well as a high internal consistency, (α = .90). The main conclusion is that the original version of the Purpose-In-Life shows a robust construct validity in a clinical population. However, authors recommend an in-depth psychometric analysis of the Purpose-In-Life Test among clinical population. Likewise, the importance of assessing meaning in life in order to enhance psychotherapeutic treatment is noted.

Keywords

confirmatory factor analysismeaning in lifemental disorderspurpose-in-life testreliability
Type
Research Article
Information
The Spanish Journal of Psychology , Volume 20 , 2017 , E31
Copyright
Copyright © Universidad Complutense de Madrid and Colegio Oficial de Psicólogos de Madrid 2017 

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