Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2020 Aug 3;18(1):260.
doi: 10.1186/s12955-020-01497-8.

Further development in the assessment of psychological flexibility: validation of the German committed action questionnaire

Yannik Terhorst  1   2 , Harald Baumeister  3 , Lance M McCracken  4 , Jiaxi Lin  5
Affiliations

Further development in the assessment of psychological flexibility: validation of the German committed action questionnaire

Yannik Terhorst et al. Health Qual Life Outcomes. .

Abstract

Background: Psychological flexibility is considered a fundamental aspect of health. It includes six interrelated facets: 1) cognitive defusion, 2) acceptance, 3) contact with the present moment, 4) self-as-context, 5) values, and 6) committed action. To gain further insight into psychological flexibility and its effects on health, reliable and valid instruments to assess all facets are needed. Committed action is one facet that is understudied. A long and short version of a validated measure (CAQ and CAQ-8) have been developed in English. Currently, there are no German versions of the CAQ. Aim of this study is to validate German-language versions of these in a chronic pain population.

Methods: The CAQ instructions and items were translated and evaluated in a chronic pain population (N = 181). Confirmatory factor analysis and Mokken scale analysis were conducted to evaluate the German questionnaires. Correlations with health outcomes, including quality of life (SF-12), physical and emotional functioning (MPI, BPI, PHQ-9, GAD-7), pain intensity, and with other facets of psychological flexibility (CPAQ, FAH-II) were investigated for convergent validity purposes. Scale reliability was assessed by the alpha, MS, lambda-2, LCRC, and omega coefficient.

Results: A bifactor model consisting of one general factor and two methodological factors emerged from the analysis. Criteria for reliability and validity were met. Medium to strong correlations to health outcomes and other facets of psychological flexibility were found. Results were similar to the original English version.

Conclusions: The present study presents a valid and reliable instrument to investigate committed action in German populations. Future studies could expand the present findings by evaluating the German CAQ versions in non-pain populations. The role of committed action and the wider psychological flexibility model in pain and other conditions deserves further investigation.

Keywords: Chronic pain; Committed action; Psychological flexibility.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

References

    1. Kashdan TB, Rottenberg J. Psychological flexibility as a fundamental aspect of health. Clin Psychol Rev. 2010;30:865–878. doi: 10.1016/j.cpr.2010.03.001. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Hayes SC, Luoma JB, Bond FW, Masuda A, Lillis J. Acceptance and commitment therapy: model, processes and outcomes. Behav Res Ther. 2006;44:1–25. doi: 10.1016/j.brat.2005.06.006. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Masuda A, Tully EC. The role of mindfulness and psychological flexibility in somatization, depression, anxiety, and general psychological distress in a nonclinical college sample. J Evid Based Complementary Altern Med. 2012;17:66–71. doi: 10.1177/2156587211423400. - DOI
    1. Hayes SC, Strosahl K, Wilson KG. Acceptance and commitment therapy : the process and practice of mindful change. New York: Guilford Press; 2012. https://www.guilford.com/books/Acceptance-and-Commitment-Therapy/Hayes-S....
    1. Lin J, Klatt L-I, McCracken LM, Baumeister H. Psychological flexibility mediates the effect of an online-based acceptance and commitment therapy for chronic pain. Pain. 2018;159:663–672. doi: 10.1097/j.pain.0000000000001134. - DOI - PubMed

Publication types