Development and Initial Validation of the Positive and Negative Co-Rumination Scale

Abstract

This article presents two studies with data from 750 college students (58.67% females, Mage = 20.79 years) and 1035 school students (52.1% girls, Mage = 14.44 years) respectively, describing the development and initial validation of the Positive and Negative Co-Rumination Scale (PANCRS). The PANCRS consists of 32 items with 3 second-order factors: Positive Co-Rumination consisting of 3 first-order factors (i.e., Affirmation, Problem-Solving and Enhancing Friendship), Negative Co-Rumination consisting of 4 first-order factors (i.e., Worry About Evaluation, Inhibiting Happiness, Worry About Impact and Slack) and Frequency consisting of 2 first-order factors (i.e., Frequencies of Co-Rumination on Positive and Negative Events). Results from exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses confirmed the measure’s 9 first-order and 3 second-order factors structure. Moreover, correlation analyses provided first evidence for the subscales’ differential validity: (1) Positive Co-Rumination showed positive correlations with positive indicators of psychological adjustment (i.e., friendship quality and life satisfaction) and negative correlations with negative indicators of psychological adjustment (i.e., anxiety and depression); (2) Negative Co-Rumination showed non-significant or negative correlations with positive indicators of psychological adjustment and positive correlations with negative indicators of psychological adjustment; (3) Frequency showed positive correlations with both positive and negative indicators of psychological adjustment. In addition, all PANCRS scores showed satisfactory composite reliability (omegas) and temporal stability (test-retest). Overall the findings suggest that the PANCRS is a reliable and valid instrument to assess positive and negative aspects of Co-rumination.