COVID-19 Traumatic Stress Scale and Preventive COVID-19 Infection Behaviors Scale: psychometric properties in Portuguese male adults

Abstract

Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pneumonia pandemic constitutes a serious public health emergency. Besides its detrimental social and economic implications, it has generated a negative psychological impact worldwide. Several studies have been carried out concerning psychological impact and mental health related to COVID-19, with the psychological constructs most studied being anxiety, fear, phobia, stress and depression. Other psychological constructs were less studied, namely post-traumatic stress related to COVID-19, as well as preventive behaviors towards COVID-19. Thus, the aims of this study were to validate the COVID-19 Traumatic Stress (C19TSS) Scale and the Preventive COVID-19 Infection Behaviors Scale (PCIBS) with a Portuguese male adult sample and to measure their invariance across age and education. Methods: Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were performed to obtain the final factor structure of the Portuguese version of both scales. Configural, metric and scalar invariance were measured across age and education through multiple-group confirmatory factor analysis (MGCFA). Results: Results showed that both C19TSS and PIBS models fitted the data well. Configural, metric and scalar invariance across age as well as configural and metric invariance across education were found regarding C19TSS. Only configural invariance across education was found regarding PCIBS. Conclusions: The C19TSS and PCIBS are valid and reliable tools for researchers interested in examining post-traumatic stress related to COVID-19 and preventive behaviors towards COVID-19.