Validation of the Injustice Experiences Questionnaire in a heterogeneous trauma sample.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE: A recent study by Trost et al. (2015) investigated the influence of perceived injustice-reflecting appraisals of the severity and irreparability of loss following injury, blame, and unfairness-on physical and psychological outcomes in a sample of patients 12 months after sustaining a traumatic injury. This brief report examines the psychometric properties of the Injustice Experiences Questionnaire (IEQ) using the previous sample from Trost et al. (2015) with added trauma patients (total N = 206).

RESEARCH METHOD/DESIGN: Primary analyses included confirmatory and exploratory factor analyses to validate the measurement model of the IEQ in patients 12 months after traumatic injury. Reliability analyses were conducted and construct validity was assessed by examining associations between the IEQ and other pain-related, psychological, and health-related outcome variables of interest.

RESULTS: Results replicated both one- and two-factor structures from past research, with a high factor correlation in confirmatory factor analyses and cross-loadings in exploratory factor analysis. Item characteristics analysis demonstrated overall strong internal consistency (α = .95). In addition, significant associations with psychosocial variables provide additional construct validity in regards to related outcomes.

CONCLUSION/IMPLICATIONS: The IEQ shows strong psychometric properties and is suitable for use in a sample of diverse traumatic injury. However, results suggest the use of a one-factor model for the IEQ in this sample. Future trauma and rehabilitation research can use the IEQ to explore how injustice perceptions related to traumatic injury can prospectively influence physical and psychological outcomes. (PsycINFO Database Record