Evidence for the Factorial Validity of the Beck Hopelessness Scale in Spanish with Clinical and non-Clinical Samples

The purpose of the present study is to evaluate the internal structure of the Spanish adaptation of the Beck Hopelessness Scale (Beck et al., 1974) given its usefulness and relevance in the prediction of suicidal behaviors. The responses to the scale of 1260 university students (M = 4.79, SD = 4.29) and of a clinical sample in which 150 young people with suicide attempt of high lethality (/14 = 8.51, SD = 2.38) participated were analyzed. The internal structure of the scale is examined by confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) in three phases. In the first pahse, the original model is compared with four models found in the different adaptations to Spanish; in the second phase, models that analyze acquiescence are taken into account, and in the third phase, a cross-validation of those models with a clinical population is made. The results indicate that the scale is one-dimensional both in the case of clinical samples (chi(2) = 154.84, gl = 135, p <0.001, CFI = 0.99, TLI = 0.99, RMSEA = 0.03), as well as in the general population. However, for the latter, a method factor was added for the treatment of acquiescence (chi(2) = 252.14, gl = 134,p <0.001, CFI = 0.95, TLI = 0.94, RMSEA = 0.03). The results show the importance of using analyzes and models that consider the nature of the data and the characteristics of the sample to provide more solid evidence for construct validity.