Abstract
This study examined the internal consistency reliability and factor structure of an abbreviated version of the Multidimensional Students’ Life Satisfaction Scale (MSLSS: Huebner, Psychological Assessment, 6, 149–158, 1994), which measures the life satisfaction of youth in five domains: family, friends, school, self, and living environment. A total of 10 negatively-worded items were excluded from the original 40-item MSLSS. The data were obtained from a sample of 844 middle school students in a Southeastern US state. The analyses revealed acceptable reliability coefficients across the five domains (range = 0.71–0.91). Using confirmatory factor analysis procedures, the correlated factors model also suggested acceptable fit across several indices. Pending further research, the abbreviated 30-item version of the MSLSS provides a promising alternative to the original MSLSS when brevity of measurement is a consideration.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Adelman, H. S., Taylor, L., & Nelson, P. (1989). Minors’ dissatisfaction with their life circumstances. Child Psychiatry and Human Development, 20, 135–147.
Adelson, J. L., & McCoach, D. B. (2010). Measuring mathematical attitudes of elementary students: the effects of a 4-point or 5-point likert-type scale. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 70, 796–807.
Anderson, L. W., & Bourke, S. F. (2000). Assessing affective characteristics in the schools (2nd ed.). Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Antaramian, S. P., Huebner, E. S., & Valois, R. F. (2008). Adolescent life satisfaction. Applied Psychology: Health and Well-Being, 57, 705–714.
Antaramian, S. P., Huebner, E. S., Hills, K. J., & Valois, R. F. (2010). A dual-factor model of mental health: toward a more comprehensive understanding of youth functioning. The American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 80, 462–472.
Ben-Arieh, A. (2008). The child indicators movement: past, present, and future. Child Indicators Research, 1, 3–16.
Brantley, A., Huebner, E. S., & Nagle, R. J. (2002). Multidimensional life satisfaction reports of adolescents with mild mental disabilities. Mental Retardation, 40(321), 329.
Browne, M. W., & Cudeck, R. (1993). Alternative ways of assessing model fit. In K. A. Bollen & J. S. Long (Eds.), Testing structural equation models (pp. 136–162). Newbury Park: Sage.
Gilman, R., Huebner, E. S., Tian, L., Park, N., O’Byrne, J., Schiff, M., Sverko, D., & Langnecht, H. (2009). Cross-national adolescent multidimensional life satisfaction reports: analyses of mean score and response style differences. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 37, 142–154.
Griffin, M., & Huebner, E. S. (2000). Multidimensional life satisfaction reports of students with serious emotional disturbance. Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment, 18, 111–124.
Hoyle, R. H. (1995). Structural equation modeling: concepts, issues, and applications. Sage: Thousand Oaks.
Hu, L., & Bentler, P. M. (1995). Evaluating model fit. In R. H. Hoyle (Ed.), Structural equation modeling: Concepts, issues, and applications (pp. 76–99). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Hu, L., & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cut-score criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: conventional criteria versus new alternative. Structural Equation Modeling, 6, 1–55.
Huebner, E. S. (1991). Initial development of the students’ life satisfaction scale. School Psychology International, 12, 231–240.
Huebner, E. S. (1994). Preliminary development and validation of a multidimensional life satisfaction scale for children. Psychological Assessment, 6, 149–158.
Huebner, E. S., & Hills, K. J. (in press). Assessment of subjective well-being in children and adolescents. In D. Saklofske, V. Schwean, & C. R. Reynolds (Eds.), The oxford handbook of psychological assessment of children and adolescents. New York: Oxford University Press.
Huebner, E. S., Laughlin, J. F., Ash, C., & Gilman, R. (1998). Further validation of the multidimensional students’ life satisfaction scale. Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment, 16, 118–134.
Huebner, E. S., Drane, J. W., & Valois, R. F. (2000). Levels and demographic correlates of adolescent life satisfaction reports. School Psychology International, 21, 281–292.
Huebner, E. S., Valois, R. F., Suldo, S. M., Smith, L. C., McKnight, C. G., Seligson, J. E., & Zullig, K. J. (2004). Adolescent perceived quality of life: a neglected component of adolescent health assessment and intervention. Journal of Adolescent Health, 34, 270–278.
Huebner, E. S., Gilman, R., & Suldo, S. M. (2006). Assessing perceived quality of life in children and youth. In S. R. Smith & L. Handler (Eds.), The clinical assessment of children and adolescents: a practitioners’ guide (pp. 39–366). Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Marsh, H. W. (1986). Negative item bias in rating scales for preadolescent children: a cognitive-developmental phenomenon. Developmental Psychology, 22, 37–49.
Muthén, L. K., & Muthén, B. O. (2010). Mplus: Sixth Edition. Los Angeles, CA.
Nunnally, J. C., & Bernstein, I. H. (1994). Psychometric theory. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Proctor, C. L., Linley, P. A., & Maltby, J. (2009). Youth life satisfaction measures: a review. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 4, 128–144.
Sawatzky, R., Ratner, P. A., Johnson, J. L., Kopec, J. A., & Zumbo, B. D. (2009). Sample heterogeneity and the measurement structure of the multidimensional students’ life satisfaction scale. Social Indicators Research, 94, 273–296.
Tucker, L. R., & Lewis, C. (1973). A reliability coefficient for maximum likelihood factor analysis. Psychometrika, 38, 1–10.
Author note
The authors thank Patrick Malone for his assistance in data analysis.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Huebner, E.S., Zullig, K.J. & Saha, R. Factor Structure and Reliability of an Abbreviated Version of the Multidimensional Students’ Life Satisfaction Scale. Child Ind Res 5, 651–657 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12187-012-9140-z
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12187-012-9140-z