Validation in Spanish of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index –IRI-in Colombian university students
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Abstract
This article explores the factorial dimensions of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index -IRI (Davis, 1980; 1983), one of the most widely used self-report measures to assess the components of empathy. The analysis is carried out with the information of 1779 first-level university students in the years 2018 and 2019 in a Colombian public university. In order to contribute to a better adaptation of the instrument to the Colombian context, the original four-factor structure proposed by the author is validated. For this purpose, a Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) estimated by Diagonalized Weighted Least Squares (WLSD) is used. The results show that the Spanish version applied to Colombian students has similar psychometric characteristics to the original version. However, fit problems are found for nine items, apparently due to difficulties in understanding the Spanish version. The final model presents better fit indicators that indicate validity in the instrument for the evaluation of the different components of empathy.
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Arenas Estevez, L. F., Rangel Quiñonez, H. S., Aguilar, A., & Palacio Garcia, L. A. (2021). Validation in Spanish of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index –IRI-in Colombian university students. Psychology, Society & Education, 13(3), 121–135. Retrieved from https://journals.uco.es/psye/article/view/14011
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References
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Beauducel, A., y Herzberg, P. Y. (2006). On the performance of maximum likelihood versus means and variance adjusted weighted least squares estimation in CFA. Structural Equation Modeling, 13(2), 186–203. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15328007sem1302_2
Bentler, P. M. (1990). Comparative fit indexes in structural models. Psychological Bulletin, 107(2), 238–246. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.107.2.238
Bentler, P. M., y Bonett, D. G. (1980). Significance tests and goodness of fit in the analysis of covariance structures. Psychological Bulletin, 88(3), 588–606. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.88.3.588
Brown, T. A. (2015). Confirmatory Factor Analysis for Applied Research (T. D. Little, Ed.) (2nd ed.). The Guilford Press.
Carrasco, M. Á., Begoña, E., Barbero, M., Holgado, F., y Del Barrio, M. (2011). Propiedades psicométricas del Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) en población infantil y adolescente española. Psicothema, 23(4), 824–831.
Cecconello, A., y Koller, S. (2000). Competência social e empatia: um estudo sobre resiliência com crianças em situação de pobreza. Estudos de Psicologia, 5(1), 71–93.
Cliffordson, C. (2001). Parent’s judgments and students’ self-judgments of empathy: the structure of empathy and agreement of judgment based on the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI). European Journal of Psychological Assessment, 17(1), 36–47. https://doi.org/10.1027//1015-5759.17.1.36
Davis, M. H. (1980). A multidimensional approach to individual differences in empathy. JSAS Catalog of Selected Documents in Psychology, 10, (85), 1-17
Davis, M. H. (1983). Measuring individual differences in empathy: evidence for a multidimensional approach. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 44, 113-126. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.44.1.113
De Corte, K., Buysse, A., Verhofstadt, L. L., Roeyers, H., Ponnet, K., y Davis, M. H. (2007). Measuring empathic tendencies: reliability and validity of the dutch version of the interpersonal reactivity index. Psychologica Belgica, 47(4), 235. https://doi.org/10.5334/pb-47-4-235
Deutsch, F., y Madle, R. A. (1975). Empathy: historic and current conceptualizations, measurement, and a cognitive theoretical perspective. Human Development, 18(4), 267–287. https://doi.org/10.1159/000271488
Eisenberg, N. (2000). Emotion, regulatión, and moral development. Annu. Rev. Psychol, 51, 665–697.
Eisenberg, N., Fabes, R. A., Guthrie, I. K., y Reiser, M. (2000). Dispositional emotionality and regulation: their role in predicting quality of social functioning. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 78(1), 136–157. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.78.1.136
Fernández, A. M., Dufey, M., y Kramp, U. (2011). Testing the psychometric properties of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) in Chile: empathy in a different cultural context. European Journal of Psychological Assessment, 27(3), 179–185. https://doi.org/10.1027/1015-5759/a000065
Flora, D. B., y Curran, P. J. (2004). An empirical evaluation of alternative methods of estimation for confirmatory factor analysis with ordinal data. Psychological Methods, 9(4), 466–491. https://doi.org/10.1037/1082-989X.9.4.466
Garcia-Barrera, M. A., Karr, J. E., Trujillo-Orrego, N., Trujillo-Orrego, S., y Pineda, D. A. (2017). Evaluating empathy in colombian ex-combatants: Examination of the internal structure of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) in Spanish. Psychological Assessment, 29(1), 116–122. https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0000331
Gilar, R., Miñano, P., y Castejón, J. (2008). Inteligencia emocional y empatía: su influencia en la competencia social en educación secundaria obligatoria. SUMMA Psicológica UST, 5(1), 21–32.
Gilet, A. L., Mella, N., Studer, J., Griihn, D., y Labouvie-Vief, G. (2013). Assessing dispositional empathy in Adults: A french validation of the interpersonal reactivity index (IRI). Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science, 45(1), 42–48. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0030425
Hawk, S. T., Keijsers, L., Branje, S. J. T., Van Der Graaff, J., De Wied, M., y Meeus, W. (2013). Examining the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) among early and late adolescents and their mothers. Journal of Personality Assessment, 95(1), 96–106. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223891.2012.696080
Hojat, M., Mangione, S., Kane, G. C., y Gonnella, J. S. (2005). Relationships between scores of the Jefferson Scale of Physician Empathy (JSPE) and the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI). Medical Teacher, 27(7), 625–628. https://doi.org/10.1080/01421590500069744
Holgado-Tello, F. P., Morata-Ramírez, M. Á., y Barbero García, M. I. (2018). Confirmatory factor analysis of ordinal variables: A simulation study comparing the main estimation methods. Avances En Psicologia Latinoamericana, 36(3), 601–618. https://doi.org/10.12804/revistas.urosario.edu.co/apl/a.4932
Howes, C., Matheson, C. C., y Hamilton, C. E. (1994). Maternal, teacher, and child care history correlates of children’s relationships with peers. Child Development, 65(1), 264–273. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.1994.tb00749.x
Ingoglia, S., Lo Coco, A., y Albiero, P. (2016). Development of a brief form of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (B–IRI). Journal of Personality Assessment, 98(5), 461–471. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223891.2016.1149858
Junttila, N., Voeten, M., Kaukiainen, A., y Vauras, M. (2006). Multisource assessment of children’s social competence. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 66(5), 874–895. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013164405285546
Kang, I., Kee, S.-W., Kim, S.-E., Jeong, B.-S., Hwang, J.-H., Song, J.-E., y Kim, J.-W. (2009). Reliability and validity of the korean-version of Interpersonal Reactivity Index. Journal Korean Neuropsychiatr Association, 48(5), 352–358.
Kerem, E., Fishman, N., y Josselson, R. (2001). The experience of empathy in everyday relationships: Cognitive and affective elements. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 18(5), 709–729. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265407501185008
Konrath, S. (2014). The empathy paradox: Increasing disconnection in the age of increasing connection. In Digital Arts and Entertainment: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications, 2, 967–991. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-4666-6114-1.ch047
Li, CH. (2015). Confirmatory factor analysis with ordinal data: Comparing robust maximum likelihood and diagonally weighted least squares. Behavior Research Methods, 48(3), 936–949. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13428-015-0619-7
Li, CH. (2016). The performance of ML, DWLS, and ULS estimation with robust corrections in structural equation models with ordinal variables. Psychological Methods, 21(3), 369–387. https://doi.org/10.1037/met0000093
Lucas-Molina, B., Pérez-Albéniz, A., Ortuño-Sierra, J., y Fonseca-Pedrero, E. (2017). Dimensional structure and measurement invariance of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) across gender. Psicothema, 29(4), 590–595. https://doi.org/10.7334/psicothema2017.19
Mestre, V., Frías, M. D., y Samper, P. (2004). La medida de la empatía: análisis del Interpersonal Reactivity Index. Psicothema, 16(2), 255–260.
Mestre, V., Samper, P., y Frías, M. D. (2002). Procesos cognitivos y emocionales predictores de la conducta prosocial y agresiva: la empatía como factor modulador. Psicothema, 14(2), 227–232.
Oceja, L., López-Pérez, B., Ambrona, T., y Fernández, I. (2009). Measuring general dispositions to feeling empathy and distress. Psicothema, 21(2), 171–176.
Paulus, C. (2009). Der Saarbrücker Persönlichkeitsfragebogen SPF (IRI) zur Messung von Empathie.Psychometrische Evaluation der deutschen Version des Interpersonal Reactivity Index.
Pérez-Albéniz, A., Paúl, J. de, Etxebarria, J., Montes, M. P., y Torres, E. (2003). Adaptación de Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) al español. Psicothema, 15(2), 267–272.
Pituch, K. A., y Stevens, J. (2015). Applied multivariate statistics for the social sciences (6th ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315814919
Pulos, S., Elison, J., y Lennon, R. (2004). The hierarchical structure of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index. Social Behavior and Personality, 32(4), 355–360. https://doi.org/10.2224/sbp.2004.32.4.355
Sampaio, L. R., Guimarães, P., Camino, C., Formiga, N., y Menezes, I. (2011). Estudos sobre a dimensionalidade da empatia tradução e adaptação do Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI). Psico, 42(1), 67–76.
Schermelleh-Engel, K., Moosbrugger, H., y Müller, H. (2003). Evaluating the fit of structural equation models: Test of significanse and descriptive goodness-of-fit measures. Methods of Psychological Research Online, 8(2), 23-74.
Siu, A. M. H., y Shek, D. T. L. (2005). Validation of the interpersonal reactivity index in a Chinese context. Research on Social Work Practice, 15(2), 118–126. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049731504270384
Vizoso-Gómez, C. M. (2019). Empatía en futuros maestros: diferencias por género. International Journal of Developmental and Educational Psychology. Revista INFAD de Psicología, 5(1), 541. https://doi.org/10.17060/ijodaep.2019.n1.v5.1636
Yarnold, P. R., Bryant, F. B., Nightingale, S. D., y Martin, G. J. (1996). Assessing physician empathy using the Interpersonal Reactivity Index: A measurement model and cross-sectional analysis. Psychology, Health and Medicine, 1(2), 207–221. https://doi.org/10.1080/13548509608400019
Beauducel, A., y Herzberg, P. Y. (2006). On the performance of maximum likelihood versus means and variance adjusted weighted least squares estimation in CFA. Structural Equation Modeling, 13(2), 186–203. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15328007sem1302_2
Bentler, P. M. (1990). Comparative fit indexes in structural models. Psychological Bulletin, 107(2), 238–246. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.107.2.238
Bentler, P. M., y Bonett, D. G. (1980). Significance tests and goodness of fit in the analysis of covariance structures. Psychological Bulletin, 88(3), 588–606. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.88.3.588
Brown, T. A. (2015). Confirmatory Factor Analysis for Applied Research (T. D. Little, Ed.) (2nd ed.). The Guilford Press.
Carrasco, M. Á., Begoña, E., Barbero, M., Holgado, F., y Del Barrio, M. (2011). Propiedades psicométricas del Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) en población infantil y adolescente española. Psicothema, 23(4), 824–831.
Cecconello, A., y Koller, S. (2000). Competência social e empatia: um estudo sobre resiliência com crianças em situação de pobreza. Estudos de Psicologia, 5(1), 71–93.
Cliffordson, C. (2001). Parent’s judgments and students’ self-judgments of empathy: the structure of empathy and agreement of judgment based on the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI). European Journal of Psychological Assessment, 17(1), 36–47. https://doi.org/10.1027//1015-5759.17.1.36
Davis, M. H. (1980). A multidimensional approach to individual differences in empathy. JSAS Catalog of Selected Documents in Psychology, 10, (85), 1-17
Davis, M. H. (1983). Measuring individual differences in empathy: evidence for a multidimensional approach. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 44, 113-126. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.44.1.113
De Corte, K., Buysse, A., Verhofstadt, L. L., Roeyers, H., Ponnet, K., y Davis, M. H. (2007). Measuring empathic tendencies: reliability and validity of the dutch version of the interpersonal reactivity index. Psychologica Belgica, 47(4), 235. https://doi.org/10.5334/pb-47-4-235
Deutsch, F., y Madle, R. A. (1975). Empathy: historic and current conceptualizations, measurement, and a cognitive theoretical perspective. Human Development, 18(4), 267–287. https://doi.org/10.1159/000271488
Eisenberg, N. (2000). Emotion, regulatión, and moral development. Annu. Rev. Psychol, 51, 665–697.
Eisenberg, N., Fabes, R. A., Guthrie, I. K., y Reiser, M. (2000). Dispositional emotionality and regulation: their role in predicting quality of social functioning. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 78(1), 136–157. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.78.1.136
Fernández, A. M., Dufey, M., y Kramp, U. (2011). Testing the psychometric properties of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) in Chile: empathy in a different cultural context. European Journal of Psychological Assessment, 27(3), 179–185. https://doi.org/10.1027/1015-5759/a000065
Flora, D. B., y Curran, P. J. (2004). An empirical evaluation of alternative methods of estimation for confirmatory factor analysis with ordinal data. Psychological Methods, 9(4), 466–491. https://doi.org/10.1037/1082-989X.9.4.466
Garcia-Barrera, M. A., Karr, J. E., Trujillo-Orrego, N., Trujillo-Orrego, S., y Pineda, D. A. (2017). Evaluating empathy in colombian ex-combatants: Examination of the internal structure of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) in Spanish. Psychological Assessment, 29(1), 116–122. https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0000331
Gilar, R., Miñano, P., y Castejón, J. (2008). Inteligencia emocional y empatía: su influencia en la competencia social en educación secundaria obligatoria. SUMMA Psicológica UST, 5(1), 21–32.
Gilet, A. L., Mella, N., Studer, J., Griihn, D., y Labouvie-Vief, G. (2013). Assessing dispositional empathy in Adults: A french validation of the interpersonal reactivity index (IRI). Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science, 45(1), 42–48. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0030425
Hawk, S. T., Keijsers, L., Branje, S. J. T., Van Der Graaff, J., De Wied, M., y Meeus, W. (2013). Examining the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) among early and late adolescents and their mothers. Journal of Personality Assessment, 95(1), 96–106. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223891.2012.696080
Hojat, M., Mangione, S., Kane, G. C., y Gonnella, J. S. (2005). Relationships between scores of the Jefferson Scale of Physician Empathy (JSPE) and the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI). Medical Teacher, 27(7), 625–628. https://doi.org/10.1080/01421590500069744
Holgado-Tello, F. P., Morata-Ramírez, M. Á., y Barbero García, M. I. (2018). Confirmatory factor analysis of ordinal variables: A simulation study comparing the main estimation methods. Avances En Psicologia Latinoamericana, 36(3), 601–618. https://doi.org/10.12804/revistas.urosario.edu.co/apl/a.4932
Howes, C., Matheson, C. C., y Hamilton, C. E. (1994). Maternal, teacher, and child care history correlates of children’s relationships with peers. Child Development, 65(1), 264–273. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.1994.tb00749.x
Ingoglia, S., Lo Coco, A., y Albiero, P. (2016). Development of a brief form of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (B–IRI). Journal of Personality Assessment, 98(5), 461–471. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223891.2016.1149858
Junttila, N., Voeten, M., Kaukiainen, A., y Vauras, M. (2006). Multisource assessment of children’s social competence. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 66(5), 874–895. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013164405285546
Kang, I., Kee, S.-W., Kim, S.-E., Jeong, B.-S., Hwang, J.-H., Song, J.-E., y Kim, J.-W. (2009). Reliability and validity of the korean-version of Interpersonal Reactivity Index. Journal Korean Neuropsychiatr Association, 48(5), 352–358.
Kerem, E., Fishman, N., y Josselson, R. (2001). The experience of empathy in everyday relationships: Cognitive and affective elements. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 18(5), 709–729. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265407501185008
Konrath, S. (2014). The empathy paradox: Increasing disconnection in the age of increasing connection. In Digital Arts and Entertainment: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications, 2, 967–991. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-4666-6114-1.ch047
Li, CH. (2015). Confirmatory factor analysis with ordinal data: Comparing robust maximum likelihood and diagonally weighted least squares. Behavior Research Methods, 48(3), 936–949. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13428-015-0619-7
Li, CH. (2016). The performance of ML, DWLS, and ULS estimation with robust corrections in structural equation models with ordinal variables. Psychological Methods, 21(3), 369–387. https://doi.org/10.1037/met0000093
Lucas-Molina, B., Pérez-Albéniz, A., Ortuño-Sierra, J., y Fonseca-Pedrero, E. (2017). Dimensional structure and measurement invariance of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) across gender. Psicothema, 29(4), 590–595. https://doi.org/10.7334/psicothema2017.19
Mestre, V., Frías, M. D., y Samper, P. (2004). La medida de la empatía: análisis del Interpersonal Reactivity Index. Psicothema, 16(2), 255–260.
Mestre, V., Samper, P., y Frías, M. D. (2002). Procesos cognitivos y emocionales predictores de la conducta prosocial y agresiva: la empatía como factor modulador. Psicothema, 14(2), 227–232.
Oceja, L., López-Pérez, B., Ambrona, T., y Fernández, I. (2009). Measuring general dispositions to feeling empathy and distress. Psicothema, 21(2), 171–176.
Paulus, C. (2009). Der Saarbrücker Persönlichkeitsfragebogen SPF (IRI) zur Messung von Empathie.Psychometrische Evaluation der deutschen Version des Interpersonal Reactivity Index.
Pérez-Albéniz, A., Paúl, J. de, Etxebarria, J., Montes, M. P., y Torres, E. (2003). Adaptación de Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) al español. Psicothema, 15(2), 267–272.
Pituch, K. A., y Stevens, J. (2015). Applied multivariate statistics for the social sciences (6th ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315814919
Pulos, S., Elison, J., y Lennon, R. (2004). The hierarchical structure of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index. Social Behavior and Personality, 32(4), 355–360. https://doi.org/10.2224/sbp.2004.32.4.355
Sampaio, L. R., Guimarães, P., Camino, C., Formiga, N., y Menezes, I. (2011). Estudos sobre a dimensionalidade da empatia tradução e adaptação do Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI). Psico, 42(1), 67–76.
Schermelleh-Engel, K., Moosbrugger, H., y Müller, H. (2003). Evaluating the fit of structural equation models: Test of significanse and descriptive goodness-of-fit measures. Methods of Psychological Research Online, 8(2), 23-74.
Siu, A. M. H., y Shek, D. T. L. (2005). Validation of the interpersonal reactivity index in a Chinese context. Research on Social Work Practice, 15(2), 118–126. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049731504270384
Vizoso-Gómez, C. M. (2019). Empatía en futuros maestros: diferencias por género. International Journal of Developmental and Educational Psychology. Revista INFAD de Psicología, 5(1), 541. https://doi.org/10.17060/ijodaep.2019.n1.v5.1636
Yarnold, P. R., Bryant, F. B., Nightingale, S. D., y Martin, G. J. (1996). Assessing physician empathy using the Interpersonal Reactivity Index: A measurement model and cross-sectional analysis. Psychology, Health and Medicine, 1(2), 207–221. https://doi.org/10.1080/13548509608400019