Psychometric properties of a short form of the Affective Lability Scale (ALS-18)

Amy E. Look, Janine D. Flory, Philip D. Harvey, Larry J. Siever

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

47 Scopus citations

Abstract

Psychometric properties of a short form of the Affective Lability Scale (ALS) that was developed in a non-clinical sample (i.e., undergraduate students) were examined in a sample of people diagnosed with Cluster B DSM-IV Axis II personality disorders (n= 236), other personality disorders (n= 180), and healthy comparison participants (n= 164). The total score of the ALS-18 score correlated strongly with the original 54-item scale (r= .97) and aspects of convergent and discriminant validity of the ALS-18 subscales (Anxiety/Depression, Depression/Elation, and Anger) were evaluated using self-report measures of affective and psychosocial functioning in the domains of affect intensity, anxiety, anger, and minimization/denial. Clinical utility of the scale was also demonstrated; participants diagnosed with Cluster B personality disorders reported higher affective lability scores, and healthy control participants reported lower scores, relative to individuals with Cluster A or Cluster C personality disorders (p's < .001). Confirmatory factor analyses were conducted and demonstrated reasonably good fit to the data but future research is needed to test the three factor substructure of the ALS-18 against alternative factor models in samples that include clinical and non-clinical participants.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)187-191
Number of pages5
JournalPersonality and Individual Differences
Volume49
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 2010

Keywords

  • Affect dysregulation
  • Affective Lability Scale
  • Cluster B personality

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