Reliability and factorial structure of a Portuguese version of the Children’s Hope Scale José Tomás da Silva Maria Paula Paixão Catarina Carvalho dos Santos IAEVG Conference 2009 FinlandJune 3-5, 2009, University of Jyväskylä

2 Topics Context of the research Snyder’s Hope theory Measuring Hope Psychometric analysis of the Children’s Hope Scale – Portuguese version Implications of the results for the research and intervention on guidance and counseling in school settings

3 Context of the research Team interest’s are focused on the study of Vocational & Academic Behavior and Development from a holistic, systemic (relational) perspective Master Program (University of Coimbra) - “Vocational Development Psychology” Catarina Santos (co-author) proposed to study the role of Patterns of Adaptive Learning, Hope, Career Attitudes on the school achievement of 3rd cycle, Portuguese students.

4 Context of the research – continuation Catarina Santos (2008) results showed that the variables that correlated more strongly with the levels of academic achievement were: –Hope, –Academic self-efficacy, –Self-handicapping strategies, –Mastery goal orientation, –Career attitudes

5 Context of the research – continuation Pattern of correlations: PALS scales vs. Hope

6 Context of the research – continuation (Standard) Multiple Regression results: R = 0,497; F (8, 567) = 23,23, p < 0,01 Largest Beta coefficient

7 Reasons for the present study To explore deeply the metrological properties of the Children’s Hope Scale In particular we intended to test the hypothesized measurement model of the CHS Two latent factors (agency and pathways), with three indicators each; The latent variables are correlated with each other.

8 Snyder’s Hope theory The Hope model was developed in the late 80’s by C. R. Snyder and colleagues, and was updated and refined several times Hope is a core construct of the positive psychology framework Hope is a strength-based construct Hope was first viewed mostly as a cognitive, motivational model

9 Snyder’s Hope theory – range of application The Hope model has been applied to various domains: –Views about self and the future (e.g., self-esteem, self- worth; optimism); –Achievement in academic and athletic domains (e.g., anxiety in competitive, test taking situations; scholastic competence; higher overall grade point averages); –Connections with other people (e.g., social competence; interest in the goal pursuit of others); –Health and well-being; –Work and vocational issues (e.g., Juntunen & Wettersten, 2006; developed and validated the Work Hope Scale)

10 Definition of Hope “Hope is a cognitive set that is composed of a reciprocally derived sense of successful (a) agency (goal directed determination) and (b) pathways (planning of ways to meet goals)” (Snyder, Harris, et al., 1991, p. 570) Hopeful thinking always includes three components: –Goals –Pathways –Agency

11 The three components of hope Goals –“Hoped-for ends. (…) Is anything that an individual desires to get, do, be, experience, or create.” Pathways (thoughts) –“Reflect a person’s perceived capacity to produce cognitive routes to desired goals.” Agency (cognitions) –“The thoughts that the people have regarding their ability to begin and continue movement on selected pathways toward those goals.” (Snyder, 2002).

12 Snyder’s Hope Model Extracted from: Snyder, C. R. (2002). Hope theory: Rainbows in the mind. Psychological Inquiry, 13, p. 254.

13 Measuring Hope Trait vs. State Various levels of abstraction Qualitative vs. Quantitative approaches Quantitative approaches are more prevalent in the literature

14 Self-report measures of Hope Snyder et al. Hope Scale (Adults) State Hope Scale (Adults) Children’s Hope Scale Other researchers Domain Specific Hope Scale (Sympson, 1999) Work Hope Scale (Juntunen & Wettersten, 2006)

15 Children’s Hope Scale Trait hope measure for children; Can be applied for children ages seven through 14 years; Includes three agency and three pathways items (next slide); Uses a six point (1=None of the time; 6=All of the time) Likert-type answer format; Has demonstrated satisfactory psychometric properties.

16 Children’s Hope Scale -items

17 Results Sample (N = 576); Age (M=13,6; SD = 1,14)

18 Descriptive Statistics: Pathways, Agency, and Hope Total Score

19 2 (sex) x 3 (school grade) MANOVA: Pathways, Agency, and Hope Total

20 Reliability estimates (internal consistency) Total sample (N = 576) Pathways: Cronbach’s alpha =.74 Agency: Cronbach’s alpha=.70 Hope Total: Cronbach’s alpha =.81

21 Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the Hypothesized dimensional model

22 Model Fit Summary

23 Standardized coefficients (loadings*) *boldfaced (“regression”) coefficients

24 Conclusion CHS produces scores that have reasonable good internal consistency reliabilities The hypothesized two factor, correlated model fit reasonably well with our data No gender differences were found No grade differences were found

25 Implications for guidance and counseling in school settings Further research –The CHS scores may add unique information about the willingness of a person to pursue goals, beyond for example, self-efficacy beliefs, and other constructs (interests, optimism; abilities) –The CHS can be used to evaluate pre/post gains in students hope, after some planed intervention

26 Implications for guidance and counseling in school settings Interventions –Assessing hope –Developing/nurturing hope a) helping students to set goals; (b) helping students to develop pathways thinking; (c) helping students to enhance their agency (e.g., Snyder’s et. al., 2003); See also Snyder (2003, Journal of Counseling and Development), and Pedroti, Edwards, et al. (2008) description of the Making Hope Happening Program (Professional School Counseling)

27 THANK’S FOR YOUR ATTENTION