title: Assessing psychological flexibility: what does it add above and beyond existing constructs?
abstract: The construct of psychological flexibility (PF) is a central concept in acceptance and commitment therapy. It is defined as the process of contacting the present moment fully as a conscious human being and persisting in or changing behavior in the service of chosen values. PF is hypothesized to be an important aspect of healthy psychological functioning. Despite its potential importance, the distinctness of PF from other constructs has not been adequately demonstrated, and psychometric evaluations of measures designed to assess it are limited. This study aimed at extending current knowledge about PF by examining the construct in 2 help-seeking samples, including panic disorder with agoraphobia (n = 368), clinically relevant social phobia (n = 209), and 2 nonclinical samples including students (n = 495) and individuals visiting an employment office (n = 95). Results across all samples indicate that PF, as measured by the Acceptance and Action Questionnaire (2nd version; AAQ-II), is a unitary construct with a 1 factor model. PF correlated with other variables largely consistent with predictions, differentiated patients from healthy controls, and showed preliminary indications of treatment sensitivity. Incremental validity was partially demonstrated, especially for indices of functioning. Surprisingly, PF also explained unique variance above more established measures for some indices of symptomatology. Results suggest that PF adds some incremental clinical validity, yet further and more stringent tests are required to fully elucidate its strengths and limitations.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Technische Universität Dresden, Chemnitzer Strasse 46, D-01187 Dresden, Germany. gloster@psychologie.tu-dresden.de
authors.forename: Andrew T
authors.initials: AT
authors.lastname: Gloster
authors.forename: Jens
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Klotsche
authors.forename: Samia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chaker
authors.forename: Katrin V
authors.initials: KV
authors.lastname: Hummel
authors.forename: Jürgen
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hoyer
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D004644:Emotions; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D010552:Personality Assessment / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011582:Psychological Theory; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D012044:Regression Analysis; D055500:Resilience, Psychological; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires / Q000592:standards; D055815:Young Adult