Mindful Self-Care Scale (MSCS): psychometric study in a Portuguese Sample

Author

Joana Moura Cabral(1,2), Célia Maria de Oliveira Barreto Coimbra Carvalho(1,2), Carolina Dall’Antonia da Motta(1,3), Joana Sofia Gonçalves Paiva Rodrigues(2), Carlos Neves Pato(4), Paula Cristina de Oliveira de Castilho Freitas(1)

Afilliations

1)University of Coimbra, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, Cognitive-Behavioural Research Centre, CINEICC, Portugal. 2)University of Azores, Faculty of Social and Human Sciences, Portugal. 3)School of Psychology and Life Sciences, Lusófona University. 4)SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University, College of Medicine; USA

Abstract

background

Mindfulness and self-care are constructs associated with the improvement of quality of life and mental health. The Mindful Self-Care Scale (MSCS) is a self-report scale aimed at assessing the frequency of self-care behaviors.

objectives

The current study aimed to translate, adapt, and study the psychometric properties of the MSCS for the Portuguese population.

methods

Confirmatory Factor Analyses (CFAs) were carried out in a sample of 426 adults between 18 and 86 years old.

results

After eliminating items with poor factor loadings (λij ≥ .3), the CFA confirmed the 6-factor model originally proposed by the authors of the MSCS. The MSCS also showed good psychometric properties, with good internal consistency, convergent and divergent validity, and predictive capacity.

conclusion

The MSCS is a psychometrically sound and useful instrument to assess the self-care behaviors in Portuguese speakers, with the potential to improve our understanding of self-care and to supporting the intervention, mainly in clinical contexts.

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