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. 2024 Apr 5:15:1252561.
doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1252561. eCollection 2024.

The physical activity and social support scale: a translation and psychometric validation study in a Chinese college student sample

Yunxia Cao  1   2 , Junfeng Yuan  1 , Lin Luo  1
Affiliations

The physical activity and social support scale: a translation and psychometric validation study in a Chinese college student sample

Yunxia Cao et al. Front Psychol. .

Abstract

Objective: This study aims to evaluate the reliability and validity of the Chinese version of the Physical Activity Social Support Scale (PASSS-C) and its measurement invariance across different gender groups in a Chinese college student sample.

Methods: A total of 1,689 Chinese college students participated in the study. We assessed the internal consistency of PASSS-C using Cronbach's alpha and McDonald's omega. A Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) was conducted to test its five-factor model. Multi-group CFA was used to examine measurement equivalence between male and female groups. Convergent and criterion-related validity were assessed using Pearson correlation coefficients.

Results: The overall internal consistency of PASSS-C was good with a Cronbach's alpha of 0.952, and the subscales showed acceptable consistency. The CFA results supported the five-factor structure of PASSS-C in the college student sample, with values of CFI = 0.932, TLI = 0.917, RMSEA = 0.048, 90% CI [0.043 0.053], SRMR = 0.047. Scalar invariance was also supported across different gender groups, with ΔCFI = -0.003, ΔTLI = 0, ΔRMSEA = 0. PASSS-C demonstrated good convergent and criterion-related validity.

Conclusion: PASSS-C exhibits satisfactory psychometric properties and is a valid and reliable tool for assessing the perceived level of social support for physical activity among college students.

Keywords: college students; measurement invariance; physical activity; physical activity social support scale (PASSS); social support.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Confirmatory factor analysis model of the five-factor PASSS-C. Standardized path coefficients were presented in this model. F1, Emotion support; F2, Validation support; F3, Information support; F4, Companionship support; F5, Instrumental support.
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Grants and funding

This study was supported by the Guizhou Provincial Basic Research Program (Natural Science) Project (Qiankehe Fund for Basic Research-ZK [2023] General 251). The Humanities and Social Science Project of Colleges and Universities in Guizhou Provincial Department of Education (2023GZGXRW150).