Psychology Research and Behavior Management (Sep 2023)
Measurement Invariance and Psychometric Evaluation of the Tendency to Avoid Physical Activity and Sport Scale (TAPAS) Among Mainland Chinese University Students
Abstract
Mohsen Saffari,1,2,* I-Hua Chen,3,* Po-Ching Huang,4 Kerry S O’Brien,5 Yi-Ping Hsieh,6 Ji-Kang Chen,7 Yun-Hsuan Chang,8– 11 Xingyong Jiang,12 Nadia Bevan,5 Yen-Ling Chang,13 Jung-Sheng Chen,14 Ching-Chung Tsai,15,16 Mark D Griffiths,17 Chung-Ying Lin4,18– 20 1Health Research Center, Life Style Institute, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; 2Health Education Department, Faculty of Health, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; 3Chinese Academy of Education Big Data, Qufu Normal University, Qufu, People’s Republic of China; 4Institute of Allied Health Sciences, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan; 5School of Social Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia; 6Department of Social Work, College of Nursing and Professional Disciplines, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, ND, USA; 7Department of Social Work, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, New Territories, Hong Kong; 8Institute of Gerontology, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan; 9Institute of Behavioral Medicine, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan; 10Department of Psychology, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan; 11Institute of Genomics and Bioinformatics, College of Life Sciences, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan; 12Yangan Primary School of Qionglai City, Qionglai, People’s Republic of China; 13Department of Family Medicine, Cardinal Tien Hospital, New Taipei, Taiwan; 14Department of Medical Research, E-Da Hospital, I-Shou University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan; 15Department of Pediatrics, E-Da Hospital, I-Shou University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan; 16School of Medicine, I-Shou University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan; 17International Gaming Research Unit, Psychology Department, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, UK; 18Department of Occupational Therapy, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan; 19Department of Public Health, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan; 20Biostatistics Consulting Center, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Chung-Ying Lin, Institute of Allied Health Sciences, Department of Occupational Therapy, Department of Public Health, Biostatistics Consulting Center, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, 1 University Road, Tainan, 701401, Taiwan, Tel +886 6 2353535 ext. 5106, Fax +886 6 2367981, Email [email protected] Ching-Chung Tsai, Department of Pediatrics, E-Da Hospital, School of Medicine, I-Shou University, 1 Yi-Da Road, Kaohsiung, 824005, Taiwan, Email [email protected]: Preventative factors in young people’s physical inactivity require further understanding, including related psychosocial factors (eg, body image and weight stigma). The Tendency to Avoid Physical Activity and Sport Scale (TAPAS) is a recently developed instrument to address this issue and the present study examined its psychometric properties among Chinese university students particularly in relation to patterns across sex, physical activity (PA) level, and weight status.Methods: Using a convenience sample of 3142 students (mean age = 19.8 years; 56% female) in mainland China, data were collected using an online survey between August and October 2022. Psychometric instruments including the Weight Bias Internalization Scale, 21-item Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale, and International Physical Activity Questionnaire Short Form were administered along with the TAPAS to assess convergent and discriminant validity. Multi-group confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) assessed the measurement invariance across specific groups.Results: The unidimensional structure of the scale was confirmed through CFA (CFI=0.995; RMSEA=0.046). All configural, metric and scalar models of invariance indicated that the scale was invariant across sex, PA level, and weight status. Acceptable convergent and discriminant validity for the scale were found.Conclusion: The TAPAS is a suitable instrument to assess body image and weight stigma concerns for avoiding physical activity and sport among Chinese university students.Keywords: confirmatory factor analysis, factor structure, psychometrics, weight stigma, young adults, China
