Elsevier

Social Science Research

Volume 35, Issue 4, December 2006, Pages 1103-1119
Social Science Research

Commentary
Best news yet on the six-factor model of well-being☆

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssresearch.2006.01.002Get rights and content

Abstract

This study provides a response to Springer and Hauser’s claim that the Ryff Scales of Psychological Well-Being do not comprise six dimensions. We show that their analyses support the theory-guided six-factor model, although their interpretations of the data reveal a lack of understanding of the construct-oriented approach to personality assessment. We also review evidence from five categories of studies (i.e., factorial validity, psychological correlates, sociodemographic correlates, biological correlates, and intervention studies) that document the distinctiveness of the six dimensions of well-being, including among subscales that are highly correlated. We conclude with an examination of the methodological corrections (negative items, adjacent items, and redundant items) employed by Springer and Hauser, finding all to be problematic, either in terms of scientific rationale or method of implementation, or both. Correlations among latent constructs resulting from these analyses are thus highly questionable.

Introduction

Because the study of well-being has gained prominence across the social sciences, investigations addressing what it is and how it can be reliably and validly measured are important. Toward that end, Springer and Hauser present data from three large samples, including two national surveys. Their conclusions from these analyses are, however, unwarranted and reflect a failure to understand the construct-oriented approach to personality assessment. Their summary of evidence regarding the dimensionality of well-being is also incomplete, and their analytic procedures to correct for method artifacts are problematic on multiple grounds. We elaborate these points below.

Section snippets

Key take-home message: the six-factor model works

The final word from Springer and Hauser’s lengthy exercise focuses on what PWB is not, rather than what it is. The claim that “RPWB does not measure six distinct dimensions of psychological well-being” (p. 1100) is not helpful for those who want to study well-being. Is the message that the six-factor model be replaced with something else, such as a three-, or four-, or five-factor model, and more importantly, what should the substantive content of the reduced factors be? On these questions,

The construct-oriented approach to scale construction

The central purpose of the original study (Ryff, 1989) was to generate a theory-based empirical approach to what it means to be mentally healthy. Although social scientists had long studied subjective well-being, key indicators (e.g., life satisfaction, happiness, and positive affect) lacked theoretical underpinnings, and thereby, neglected aspects of positive psychological functioning described in conceptions of life-span development (Bühler, 1935, Bühler and Massarik, 1968, Erikson, 1959,

Multiple sources of evidence for the dimensionality of PWB

Adjudicating the dimensionality of psychological well-being requires assembling multiple types of evidence, five categories of which are considered below. The first pertains to studies of factorial validity, the second to studies of the psychological correlates and cross-time dynamics of PWB, the third to assessments of the sociodemographic correlates of well-being, the fourth to studies of biological correlates of well-being, and the fifth to intervention efforts designed to promote positive

Questions about method artifacts

The methodological corrections included by Springer and Hauser’s model-fitting exercise have, in our view, dubious standing, conceptually and empirically. This, in turn, points to problems in correlations among latent constructs that emerge from the “corrected” models. Some of these problems reflect differences between psychology and sociology in their respective views of what constitutes good psychometric practice.

Although the model-fitting with WLS mail survey data posed no serious challenge

Tensions between the disciplines and what lies ahead

Throughout this evaluation of Springer and Hauser’s methods, there is evidence of disagreement, sometimes along disciplinary lines, as to what constitutes good psychometric practice and credible analytic procedures. In some circles negative-worded items are construed as a source of error, while in others, they are viewed as a tool for reducing error (acquiescence response bias). Similarly, question-order effects are handled by some by systematically mixing the order of items designed to assess

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    ☆

    This research was supported by the National Institute on Aging (P01-AG020166), the National Institute of Mental Health (P50-MH61083), and a grant from the NIH (M01-RR03186) to the General Clinical Research Center of the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

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