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Psychometric properties of the problem solving inventory in a group of Turkish university students

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Abstract

The Problem Solving Inventory (PSI; Heppner & Petersen, 1982) is a widely used self-report measure of applied problem solving in the United States. This study examined the psychometric properties of the PSI in a Turkish cultural context, specifically with regard to normative, reliability, and validity information. Subjects were 244 Turkish university students (153 women, 71 men) who completed the Turkish version of the PSI, Beck Depression Inventory, and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. The Turkish data provide additional psychometric support for the PSI and enhance the generalizability of some of the previous findings based on U.S. samples. Moreover, the Turkish data also suggest that the psychological construct of problem-solving appraisal may have some utility in understanding applied problem solving in the Turkish culture. Finally, the study provides cross-cultural information that increases our knowledge about the utility of problem-solving constructs across diverse environments, particularly with regard to an approach/avoidance dimension across problem-solving strategies.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Middle East Technical University, 06531, Ankara, Turkey

    Nail Sahin

  2. Bilkent University, USA

    Nesrin H. Sahin

  3. University of Missouri-Columbia, USA

    P. Paul Heppner

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  1. Nail Sahin
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  2. Nesrin H. Sahin
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  3. P. Paul Heppner
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Sahin, N., Sahin, N.H. & Heppner, P.P. Psychometric properties of the problem solving inventory in a group of Turkish university students. Cogn Ther Res 17, 379–396 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01177661

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