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An Item Response Theory Analysis of the Subjective Happiness Scale

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  • Brian O’Connor
  • Maxine Crawford
  • Mark Holder

Abstract

Item response theory analyses were conducted on Lyubomirsky and Lepper’s (Soc Indic Res 46:137–155, 1999 ) Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS) in a sample of 1,037 undergraduates. In general, the SHS performed well. However, four, clear, previously unreported findings emerged that suggest modifications for improving the scale. The measure displayed weak discrimination power at the high, happy end of the latent trait continuum. The number of response options (seven) is excessive and unnecessary. One of the SHS items is problematic and provides minimal psychometric information relative to the other three items, apparently because of ambiguity in the wording of the item. And a three-item version of the SHS performed just as well as the original, four-item version. The implications of these findings for the usage and further development of the SHS are discussed. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2015

Suggested Citation

  • Brian O’Connor & Maxine Crawford & Mark Holder, 2015. "An Item Response Theory Analysis of the Subjective Happiness Scale," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 124(1), pages 249-258, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:soinre:v:124:y:2015:i:1:p:249-258
    DOI: 10.1007/s11205-014-0773-9
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Rizopoulos, Dimitris, 2006. "ltm: An R Package for Latent Variable Modeling and Item Response Analysis," Journal of Statistical Software, Foundation for Open Access Statistics, vol. 17(i05).
    2. Sonja Lyubomirsky & Heidi Lepper, 1999. "A Measure of Subjective Happiness: Preliminary Reliability and Construct Validation," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 46(2), pages 137-155, February.
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    2. Leanna M. Closson & Alicia M. McVarnock & Laura E. Cook, 2022. "Is there an Upside to Social Withdrawal? Considering Well-Being among Socially Withdrawn Emerging Adults," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 17(5), pages 3131-3149, October.
    3. Fabrizio Maturo & Francesca Fortuna & Tonio Di Battista, 2019. "Testing Equality of Functions Across Multiple Experimental Conditions for Different Ability Levels in the IRT Context: The Case of the IPRASE TLT 2016 Survey," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 146(1), pages 19-39, November.
    4. Shiri Cohen Kaminitz, 2018. "Happiness Studies and the Problem of Interpersonal Comparisons of Satisfaction: Two Histories, Three Approaches," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 19(2), pages 423-442, February.
    5. Albert Feliu-Soler & Javier de Diego-Adeliño & Juan V. Luciano & Ioseba Iraurgi & Carlo Alemany & Dolors Puigdemont & Víctor Pérez & Maria J. Portella & Joan Trujols, 2021. "Unhappy While Depressed: Examining the Dimensionality, Reliability and Validity of the Subjective Happiness Scale in a Spanish Sample of Patients with Depressive Disorders," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(20), pages 1-13, October.
    6. Anrafel de Souza Barbosa & Maria Cristina Crispim & Luiz Bueno da Silva & Jonhatan Magno Norte da Silva & Aglaucibelly Maciel Barbosa & Sandra Naomi Morioka, 2024. "How can organizations measure the integration of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria? Validation of an instrument using item response theory to capture workers' perception," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(4), pages 3607-3634, May.

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