Factor structure of the Dispositional Hope Scale amongst South Africans: An exploratory structural equation modelling study

Itumeleng P Khumalo,Tharina Guse

doi:10.4102/ajopa.v4i0.66

Abstract

Snyder’s model of hope conceptualises and operationalises hope as a cognitive, trait-like bi-dimensional future-oriented construct consisting of pathways thinking and agency thinking for goal achievement. The present study implemented exploratory structural equation modelling (ESEM) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) on the Dispositional Hope Scale, using data from two South African student samples (n = 383, 48% female, 21.70 years average age and n = 251, 68% female, 20.55 years average age), with the aim to examine its factor structure in an African context. The results showed that a six item unidimensional solution of hope fit the data best. This model characterises hope as the ability to make plans, informed by past experiences and to spontaneously manoeuvre around obstacles as any situation may call for it. This finding has implications for the measurement of hope and development of emic operational models in an African context.

Highlights

The study of hope, as a goal-directed and future-oriented concept, features prominently as a focus of scientific inquiry in positive psychology (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000; Snyder, 2004)
Recognising that confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) has generally been used to examine the construct validity of multi-item instruments comprising hypothesised factors (Pretorius, 2021), our study extends this work by applying exploratory structural equation modelling (ESEM) to the Dispositional Hope Scale (DHS) in South Africa
Was the necessity for this study driven by the statistical analytical approach and the African socio-cultural context, but we wanted to contribute to the current body of knowledge where there seems to be a lack of consensus about the measurement of hope

Summary

Introduction

The study of hope, as a goal-directed and future-oriented concept, features prominently as a focus of scientific inquiry in positive psychology (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000; Snyder, 2004). It shares conceptual similarity with a number of other future-oriented constructs (Krafft, Martin-Krumm, & Fenouillet, 2017), hope is defined as a cognitive and dispositional process that involves agency and pathways for reaching one’s goals (Snyder, 1995, 2002, 2004; Snyder, Cheavens, & Sympson, 1997; Snyder et al, 1991). High hope ‘reflects an elevated sense of mental energy and pathways for goals’ (Snyder, 1995, p. 355)

Methods

Discussion

Conclusion