Internal Consistency and Dimensionality of the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10 and PSS-14) in a Sample of Female University Students in Bogotá, Colombia

Abstract

Purpose. Identify the internal consistency and dimensionality of the 14-point and 10-point Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-14 and PSS-10) in a sample of female university students from Bogotá, Colombia. Method. The authors designed a validation study of a scale without the use of reference criteria. The sample included 175 women over age 18, all students at a public university. The average age was 19.5 years (DE=1.9). The participants filled out the version of PSS-14 that includes PSS-10. Cronbach’s alph was used to measure the internal consistency of both versions; a confirmatory factor analysis was done with the method of maximum likelihood and oblique rotation. Results. The internal consistency for PSS-14 was 0.87; for PSS-10, it was 0.86. PSS-14 showed two factors (coping and perception of stress) that explain 49.6% of the variance. PSS-10 showed a single factor that explains 45.0% of the variance. Conclusions. PSS-14 and PSS-10 show acceptable internal consistency and factor structure in a sample of female university students. These findings need to be corroborated in other Colombian populations.