The Yiptis Common Belief Scale: A Psychometric Evaluation

The basic psychometric characteristics of the Common Belief Scale (CBS) of the YIPTIS, Your Irrational Personality Trait Inventory Score, were investigated. The CBS was formulated within Ellis\u27s conceptual framework of Rational Behavior Therapy. Designed for use with adults of at least normal intelligence, its purpose is to evaluate the strength of identification with a specified set of common irrational beliefs which are hypothesized to lead to emotional disturbance. Subjects taking part in this study were volunteers ranging in age from seventeen to twenty-seven. The total sample of 186 subjects was composed of 105 female- and 81 males. Approximately one half of the subjects were administered the CBS and the Taylor Manifest Anxiety Scale (TMAS. The remaining subjects were administered the CPS in a two week test-retest design. Item means, standard deviations, and item-total correlations were computed for each item on the CBS. The reliability of the scale was investigated by test-retest and split-half procedures. The structural validity of the instrument was investigated through a factor analysis procedure conducted to determine the number and strength of the factors measured. The concurrent validity of the CES was investigated in a correlate design between the CBS and the TMAS. The results indicated that the majority of items were reliable indicators of the total score and contributed to the reliability of the instrument. Suggestions were made to improve weak items. The reliability procedures all yielded coefficients of approximately .80. Structural validity was investigated by a factor analysis which yielded fourteen reliable factors; ten of these factors were conceptually related to specific irrational beliefs or to the central concepts of the RBT theory. The concurrent validity of the instrument was supported by a low but significant correlation between the CBS and the TMAS. It was concluded that in its present form the CPS of the YIPTIS is an adequately reliable instrument for its intended use as an aid in identifying irrational beliefs in a therapeutic setting. Recommendations for improvement of the scale and further research are discussed