The measurement of affect, mood, and emotion : a guide for health-behavioral research

The role of affective constructs in human behavior in general, and health behavior in particular, is recapturing the attention of researchers. Affect, mood, and emotion are again considered powerful motives behind dietary choices, physical activity participation, cigarette smoking, alcohol over-consumption, and drug abuse. However, researchers entering the fray must confront a vast and confusing theoretical and technical literature. The enormity of this challenge is reflected in numerous problems plaguing recent studies, from selecting measures without offering a rationale, to interchanging terms that are routinely misconstrued. The Measurement of Affect, Mood, and Emotion cuts through the jargon, clarifes controversies, and proposes a sound three-tiered system for selecting measures that can rectify past mistakes and accelerate future progress. Panteleimon Ekkekakis offers an accessible and comprehensive guidebook of great value to academic researchers and postgraduate students in the felds of psychology, behavioral and preventive medicine, behavioral nutrition, exercise science, and public health. PA n T E l Ei Mon Ek k Ek A k is is an associate professor in the Department of kinesiology at iowa state University. Cover The Measurement of Affect, Mood, and Emotion Title Copyright Dedication Contents Figures Foreword Prologue First the good news Now the not-so-good news The goal of this book 1 Documenting the breadth and depth of the problem Newcomers, beware: brace yourselves ‘cause this ain’t gonna be easy! How bad is the situation, really? The head-in-the-sand approach: choosing a measure without providing a rationale The dreadful but all too common “this measure was used because it has been used before” “They’re all the same”: interchanging terms referring to substantively different constructs Measures as sacrosanct legacies: sticking with a measure no matter what Internal consistency as the summary index of psychometric merit Armed with easy to use software but no theory: confirmatory factor analysis misapplied Domain specificity as panacea Conclusion 2 Untangling the terminological Gordian knot The differences between affect, emotion, and mood Recognizing the pitfalls of imprecise and inconsistent terminology What is core affect? What is emotion? What is mood? What does this mean and why should we care? Conclusion 3 Should affective states be considered as distinct entities or as positioned along dimensions? Distinct entities or dimensions: why should we care? The distinct-states approach The dimensional approach Russell’s circumplex model Watson and Tellegen’s Positive Affect – Negative Affect model Thayer’s two-dimensional model The integrative circumplex of Larsen and Diener The compatibility of contemporary dimensional models The hierarchical structure of the affective domain: an integrative framework Conclusion 4 Are pleasant and unpleasant states independent or polar opposites? Questions of bipolarity versus independence: what complexities lurk beneath the surface? The crucial role of methodological factors Evaluative Space Model and “emotionally complex” situations Neural considerations Current status of the bipolarity versus independence debate What does this all mean and why should we care? 5 Selecting a measure: a proposed three-step process Justifying the selection of a measure: some examples 6 The old classics: measures of distinct states The Multiple Affect Adjective Check List The Profile of Mood States The State-Trait Anxiety Inventory 7 Dimensional measures The Self-Assessment Manikin The Affect Grid The Circular Mood Scale The Feeling Scale and the Felt Arousal Scale The Evaluative Space Grid The Semantic Differential Measures of Emotional State The Positive and Negative Affect Schedule The Activation Deactivation Adjective Check List 8 Domain-specific measurement: challenges and solutions Lack of theoretical basis Domain underrepresentation The troubled notion of domain specificity The “sensitivity” slippery slope If not domain specificity, then what? 9 Problems of domain specificity: examples from exercise The Exercise-induced Feeling Inventory The Subjective Exercise Experiences Scale The Physical Activity Affect Scale Epilogue References Index "The role of affective constructs in human behaviour in general, and health behaviour in particular, is recapturing the attention of researchers. Affect, mood and emotion are again considered powerful motives behind dietary choices, physical activity participation, cigarette smoking, alcohol overconsumption and drug abuse. However, researchers entering the fray must confront a vast and confusing theoretical and technical literature. The enormity of this challenge is reflected in numerous problems plaguing recent studies, from selecting measures without offering a rationale, to interchanging terms that are routinely misconstrued. The Measurement of Affect, Mood, and Emotion cuts through the jargon, clarifies controversies and proposes a sound three-tiered system for selecting measures that can rectify past mistakes and accelerate future progress. Panteleimon Ekkekakis offers an accessible and comprehensive guidebook of great value to academic researchers and postgraduate students in the fields of psychology, behavioural and preventive medicine, behavioural nutrition, exercise science and public health"--Provided by publisher. Affect, mood and emotion are focal points of the booming research field investigating the mechanisms behind health behaviours such as diet, smoking and physical activity. Panteleimon Ekkekakis proposes a sound system for selecting measures for these constructs in an accessible guidebook of particular interest to academic researchers and postgraduate students.