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Psychometric Properties and Measurement Invariance of the Youth Psychopathic Traits Inventory - Short Version among Portuguese Youth

2017; Springer Science+Business Media; Volume: 39; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1007/s10862-017-9597-7

1573-3505

Pedro Pechorro, Diana Ribeiro da Silva, Daniel Rijo, Rui Abrunhosa Gonçalves, Henrik Andershed,

Crime Patterns and Interventions

This study aimed to examine the psychometric properties of the Youth Psychopathic Traits Inventory - Short version (YPI-S) among a mixed-gender sample of 782 Portuguese youth (M = 15.87 years; SD = 1.72) collected in a school context. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis offered support for the expected 3-factor structure. Partial cross-gender measurement invariance and cross-sample measurement invariance of the YPI-S using a forensic sample of institutionalized males was established. The Portuguese version of the YPI-S showed adequate psychometric properties in terms of internal consistency, mean inter-item correlation, corrected item-total correlation, convergent validity, and discriminant validity. In support for criterion-related validity, the YPI-S also showed statistically significant associations with self-reported conduct disorder symptoms, alcohol abuse, and drug use. In terms of known-groups validity, males from the school sample scored lower than males from the forensic sample and higher than females from the school sample. The YPI-S seems to be a valuable brief and psychometrically reliable and valid self-report measure, which can be used to assess psychopathic traits in diverse samples of youth.