The stability of the A‐Trait subscale of the STAI for stress and passage of time

Cornelis K. van der Ent*, Jacqueline M.J. Smorenburg, Benno Bonke

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

4 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

One hundred and eighty‐eight surgical patients completed the A‐Trait subscale of a Dutch version of the State‐Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI‐DY) on the day before the operation and again 3 days later. A‐Trait total‐scores were significantly lower in the second measurement (p < .01), and weighted kappa techniques showed disagreement in 8 of 20 pre‐postsurgery items. Nine to 12 months postsurgery, 90 patients completed the measure again. Total‐scores in session 3 were significantly higher than in session 2 (p < .02), and 15 items showed disagreement between both sessions, with more agreement in Anxiety‐present than in Anxiety‐absent items. The ranges of the A‐Trait score‐changes between the different sessions turned out to be rather wide. These results indicate some instability of the A‐Trait subscale of the STAI and argue for a cautious interpretation of individual scores.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)379-385
Number of pages7
JournalJournal of Clinical Psychology
Volume43
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jul 1987
Externally publishedYes

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