Cross-Cultural Validation of the International Affective Picture System (IAPS) on a Moroccan Sample

Abstract

The International Affective Picture System (IAPS) is a database of unified images used to study emotion and attention. This study aims to investigate the reliability and validity of these images to arouse the emotions of Moroccans.123 Moroccan students (75 female, age group:18-51) belonging to the Department of Psychology at Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University, rated valence, arousal, and dominance for 238 stratified representative samples from IAPS images, using the self-assessment manikin (SAM). The reliability values showed significant internal consistency in the participants' evaluations.The results of the comparisonbetween the evaluations of our sample and the North American sample showed a significant correlation (.94 for valence, .75 for dominance, and .70 for arousal), which indicates that the evaluations of the two samples are similar. Moreover, the distribution of images in the emotional space of pleasure and excitement was embodied as boomerang-shaped as was the case in the American sample, with there being more clarity in our sample.These results confirm the validity of using IAPS images to arouse the emotions of Moroccans.