Measuring various aspects of coronavirus anxiety: a psychometric evaluation of Pandemic anxiety and Coronophobia scales from the latent and network perspective

Lenka Vargová; Pavol Kačmár; Martin Lačný; Gabriel Baník

doi:10.1007/s12144-023-04277-x

Measuring various aspects of coronavirus anxiety: a psychometric evaluation of Pandemic anxiety and Coronophobia scales from the latent and network perspective

Curr Psychol. 2023 Feb 8:1-14. doi: 10.1007/s12144-023-04277-x. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Lenka Vargová¹, Pavol Kačmár², Martin Lačný³, Gabriel Baník¹

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Psychology, Faculty of Arts, University of Presov, 17. Novembra 1, 080 01 Presov, Slovakia.
² Department of Psychology, Faculty of Arts, Pavol Jozef Safarik University in Kosice, Moyzesova 9, 040 59 Kosice, Slovakia.
³ Institute of Political Science, Faculty of Arts, University of Presov, 17. Novembra 1, 080 01 Presov, Slovakia.

Abstract

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, understanding and describing the changes in experiences related to the pandemic and its correlates have become crucial. The current study aims to provide a psychometric evaluation and examination of the relationship of two COVID-related anxiety scales through the latent and network approach. The data was collected from the same participants at two time points (Nwave 1 = 1283; Nwave 2 = 1326). The study examined the psychometric properties of the Pandemic Anxiety Scale and Coronaphobia scale. It also examined the factor structure, invariance and relationship with selected variables through both the latent and network approach. The results revealed that both scales provided good fit and psychometric properties-PAS (wave1: CFI = 0.97, TLI = 0.95, RMSEA = 0.05 [0.04, 0.07], SRMR = 0.048; wave2: CFI = 0.97, TLI = 0.95, RMSEA = 0.05 [0.04, 0.07], SRMR = 0.049), and Coronaphobia scale (wave1: CFI = 0.99, TLI = 0.98, RMSEA = 0.05 [0.03, 0.07], SRMR = 0.027; wave2: CFI ~ 1, TLI = 0.99, RMSEA = 0.03 [0.002, 0.06], SRMR = 0.015). The results also indicated that distinguishing between them is crucial as they were related differently to various variables. The global network models provided a more complex insight in their connections with the set of selected variables. The PAS and Coronaphobia scales are brief and valid measures that can be used in research looking at mental health issues related to the pandemic. The present study shows a unique pattern of relationships of these scales with other variables, extending previous studies into the topic of COVID-related anxiety.

Keywords: COVID-19; Coronaphobia scale; Network analysis; Pandemic anxiety scale; Psychometric evaluation.

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