Psychometric properties of a Dutch version of the Obsessive Beliefs Questionnaire—Child Version (OBQ-CV)

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.janxdis.2011.03.008Get rights and content

Abstract

To improve research in cognitive theories of childhood OCD, a child version of the Obsessive Beliefs Questionnaire (OBQ-CV) has been developed (Coles et al., 2010). In the present study, psychometric properties of the Dutch OBQ-CV were examined in a community sample (N = 547; 8–18 years) and an OCD sample (N = 67; 8–18 years). Results revealed good internal consistency and adequate retest reliability (retest interval 7–21 weeks and 6–12 weeks, respectively). Children with OCD reported more beliefs than non-clinical children. Obsessive beliefs were related to self-reported OCD symptoms, but not to clinician-rated OCD severity. Beliefs were also related to anxiety and depression. This is the first study examining the factor structure of the OBQ-CV. Confirmatory factor analyses revealed best fit for four factors representing Perfectionism/Certainty, Importance/Control of Thoughts, Responsibility, and Threat, and a higher-order factor. This is in line with results from adult samples. These results support the reliability and validity of the Dutch OBQ-CV.

Highlights

► The Dutch OBQ-CV showed good internal consistency and adequate retest reliability. ► Children with OCD reported more obsessive beliefs than non-clinical children. ► Obsessive beliefs were related to self-reported OCD symptoms, anxiety and depression. ► Obsessive beliefs were not related to clinician-rated OCD severity.

Section snippets

Participants

The community sample (COMM) consisted of 559 Dutch children and adolescents (8–18 years). Twelve participants were excluded due to missing or extreme data (see below). The final sample consisted of 547 participants with a mean age of 12.5 years (SD = 2.2), 271 boys (49.5%). Participants were recruited from three regular elementary schools and three regular secondary schools of different educational levels, in urban as well as rural areas.

The OCD sample (OCD) consisted of 67 children (8–18 years)

Data screening

Data from participants with more than 5 missing items on the OBQ-CV or more than 2 missing items within a single subscale were excluded from analyses. For other participants, missing values were replaced by the individual mean of all valid items of the (sub)scale. Eleven participants from the community sample were excluded from analyses due to missing data, and 57 items (0.2%) were replaced. Additionally, one outlier was excluded (OBQ-CV total score >3 SD above sample mean). In the OCD sample,

Discussion

In the present study, psychometric properties of the Dutch translation of the OBQ-CV were examined in a community sample (N = 547) of 8- to 18-year-old children and a clinical sample of children with OCD (N = 67; 8–18 years). The OBQ-CV showed good internal consistency and adequate to good retest reliability. Children with OCD reported more obsessive beliefs than non-clinical children. More specifically, the OCD group reported a wider variety and a higher frequency of obsessive beliefs. Furthermore,

References (57)

  • D. Julien et al.

    The specificity of belief domains in obsessive–compulsive symptom subtypes

    Personality and Individual Differences

    (2006)
  • P. Muris et al.

    Thought-action fusion and anxiety disorders symptoms in normal adolescents

    Behaviour Research and Therapy

    (2001)
  • S.G. Myers et al.

    Belief domains of the Obsessive Beliefs Questionnaire-44 (OBQ-44) and their specific relationship with obsessive–compulsive symptoms

    Journal of Anxiety Disorders

    (2008)
  • J. Reeves et al.

    An experimental manipulation of responsibility in children: a test of the inflated responsibility model of obsessive–compulsive disorder

    Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry

    (2010)
  • P.M. Salkovskis et al.

    Responsibility attitudes and interpretations are characteristic of obsessive compulsive disorder

    Behaviour Research and Therapy

    (2000)
  • L. Scahill et al.

    Children's Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale: reliability and validity

    Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry

    (1997)
  • R. Shafran et al.

    Thought-action fusion in obsessive compulsive disorder

    Journal of Anxiety Disorders

    (1996)
  • E.A. Storch et al.

    Psychometric evaluation of the Children's Yale-Brown obsessive–compulsive scale

    Psychiatry Research

    (2004)
  • A.G. Yucelen et al.

    Interrater reliability and clinical efficacy of Children's Yale-Brown obsessive–compulsive Scale in an outpatient setting

    Compr Psychiatry

    (2006)
  • J.L. Arbuckle

    AMOS 16. 0 [Computer software]

    (2007)
  • P. Barrett et al.

    Perceived responsibility in juvenile obsessive–compulsive disorder: an experimental manipulation

    Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology

    (2003)
  • P.M. Bentler et al.

    Significance tests and goodness of fit in the analysis of covariance-structures

    Psychological Bulletin

    (1980)
  • D. Bolton et al.

    Magical thinking in childhood and adolescence: development and relation to obsessive compulsion

    British Journal of Developmental Psychology

    (2002)
  • T.A. Brown

    Confirmatory factor analysis for applied research

    (2006)
  • M.E. Coles et al.

    Development and initial validation of the Obsessive Beliefs Questionnaire—Child Version (OBQ-CV)

    Depression and Anxiety

    (2010)
  • D.W. Evans et al.

    Magical beliefs and rituals in young children

    Child Psychiatry & Human Development

    (2002)
  • L. Farrell et al.

    obsessive–compulsive disorder across developmental trajectory: cognitive processing of threat in children, adolescents and adults

    British Journal of Psychology

    (2006)
  • M. Faull et al.

    Obsessive beliefs and their relation to obsessive–compulsive symptoms

    Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy

    (2004)
  • Cited by (0)

    View full text