Psychometric Validation of the Stress Appraisal Measure in a Sample of Individuals With Multiple Sclerosis

Abstract

People with multiple sclerosis (MS) must often cope with a high level of stress. Lazarus and Folkman’s (1984) stress-appraisal-coping theory described the importance of stress appraisals to determine which behavioral responses and coping strategies an individual draws upon following stressful events. One of the most highly validated stress appraisal measures is the Stress Appraisal Measure (SAM; Peacock and Wong, 1990), which was primarily developed as a dispositional measure,SAM-Revised(SAM-R: Roesch and Rowley, 2005). However, it has not been validated in adults with MS. The purpose of this study was to confirm the measurement structure and psychometric properties of theSAM-Rwith a sample of adults with MS. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to examine the factor structure ofSAM-Rin 477 adults with MS. CFA confirmed the three-factor structure:χ2/df= 3.94 (less than 5), comparative fit index = .95 (higher than .90), root mean square error of approximation = 0.079 (90% confidence interval [0.070, 0.087]; less than .08), and the standardized root mean square residual = .046 (less than .08). The three factors include (a) challenge appraisal, (b) threat appraisal, and (c) centrality appraisal. Correlations among these three factors and external measures of related concepts provided evidence of the validity of these factors. TheSAM-Ris a psychometrically validated measure that can be incorporated in rehabilitation counseling, mental health, and healthcare settings to assess the stress appraisal style. Rehabilitation and health professionals can use it to evaluate the effectiveness of psychosocial interventions in helping people with MS to manage stressful life events and improve their mental health.