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Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment

Gepubliceerd in:

28-06-2023

The Existential Nihilism Scale (ENS): Theory, Development, and Psychometric Evaluation

Auteurs: Jeremy Forsythe, MA, Myriam Mongrain, PhD

Gepubliceerd in: Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment | Uitgave 3/2023

Abstract

Existential nihilism is a worldview characterized by the belief that the totality of existence is meaningless and any attempt to change or rectify this, with the goal of establishing meaning, is futile. Despite the rich but often ambiguous philosophical and cultural history of existential nihilism, its impact on mental health and society remains largely unknown due to a gap in the scientific measurement literature. To address this gap, an 8-item scale measuring the proposed construct was rigorously developed and tested in accordance with psychometric theory and scale development guidelines. Two identical studies were conducted with an undergraduate sample (N = 329) and a community sample (N = 307) to evaluate the scale’s item quality, reliability, internal structure, convergent validity, concurrent validity, discriminant validity, and incremental validity. Evaluation of the Existential Nihilism Scale (ENS) provided evidence of strong psychometric properties. This new measure promises to contribute to future research examining the impact of existential nihilism on mental health, wellbeing, and social outcomes.

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All online values presented are from April 2023.

Expert is defined as a thorough understanding of the conceptual definition of the proposed construct taught through seminar presentations and discussions.

With the exception of item 9 on the MLQ in Sample 2, which loaded onto the existential nihilism factor with a relatively low factor loading of -.320.

With the exception of item 9 on the MLQ, which loaded onto the existential nihilism factor with a relatively low factor loading of -.320.

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Titel: The Existential Nihilism Scale (ENS): Theory, Development, and Psychometric Evaluation
Auteurs: Jeremy Forsythe, MA
Myriam Mongrain, PhD
Publicatiedatum: 28-06-2023
Uitgeverij: Springer US
Gepubliceerd in: Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment / Uitgave 3/2023
Print ISSN: 0882-2689
Elektronisch ISSN: 1573-3505
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10862-023-10052-w

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