Christine Robitschek

Development and psychometric evaluation of the Personal Growth Initiative Scale–II.

The original Personal Growth Initiative Scale (PGIS; Robitschek, 1998) was unidimensional, despite theory identifying multiple components (e.g., cognition and behavior) of personal growth initiative (PGI). The present research developed a multidimensional measure of the complex process of PGI, while retaining the brief and psychometrically sound properties of the original scale. Study 1 focused on scale development, including theoretical derivation of items, assessing factor structure, reducing number of items, and refining the scale length using samples of college students. Study 2 consisted of confirmatory factor analysis with 3 independent samples of college students and community members. Lastly, Study 3 assessed test-retest reliability over 1-, 2-, 4-, and 6-week periods and tests of concurrent and discriminant validity using samples of college students. The final measure, the Personal Growth Initiative Scale-II (PGIS-II), includes 4 subscales: Readiness for Change, Planfulness, Using Resources, and Intentional Behavior. These studies provide exploratory and confirmatory evidence for the 4-factor structure, strong internal consistency for the subscales and overall score across samples, acceptable temporal stability at all assessed intervals, and concurrent and discriminant validity of the PGIS-II. Future directions for research and clinical practice are discussed.

Validity of Personal Growth Initiative Scale Scores with a Mexican American College Student Population.

This study tested the validity of scores on the Personal Growth Initiative Scale (PGIS; C. Robitschek, 1998, 1999) with a Mexican American college student sample. Results indicated that the PGIS scores appear to be culturally relevant for this population, with scores on the PGIS having many similar relations with other variables that have been found in prior research with mostly European American college students. PGIS scores appear to be minimally related to measures of cultural constructs for both Mexican American men and women. Results are discussed in terms of their relations to constructs prevalent in Mexican American cultures. Limitations, implications for counseling, and suggestions for future research are presented.

Intrapersonal, Familial, and Cultural Factors in the Commitment to a Career Choice of Mexican American and Non-Hispanic White College Women.

These 2 studies assessed intrapersonal, familial, and cultural factors in the process of committing to a career choice of 91 and 71 Mexican American (MA) and 52 and 76 non-Hispanic White (NHW) college women. Factors different from what previous theory and research have suggested may propel the commitment to a career choice in these 2 groups. MA womens commitment to a career choice was influenced more by their instrumentality and less by their expressiveness or their parents; NHWs commitment was influenced by familial factors rather than by intrapersonal factors in Study 1 and by instrumentality in Study 2. These findings underscore the need to investigate intrapersonal, contextual factors and culture in womens processes of committing to a career choice.

Self-discrepancy and distress: The role of personal growth initiative.

Higher levels of personal growth initiative (PGI; C. Robitschek, 1998) are associated with lower negative and higher positive affect (e.g., C. Robitschek & S. Kashubeck, 1999; C. Robitschek & C. L. M. Keyes, 2004). Two hypotheses that have been suggested for such findings are that (a) PGI moderates the relation between problems and affect and (b) successful resolution of potential problems mediates the relation between PGI and affect (C. Robitschek & S. Kashubeck, 1999). The current research tested these two hypotheses, using self-discrepancies (E. T. Higgins, 1987) as problems or sources of distress. Using a sequential design and a sample of predominantly European American college students (N = 134), the authors found that PGI was associated with lower social anxiety and negative affect, higher positive affect, and lower self-discrepancies. No support for the first (moderation) hypothesis was found. However, there was partial support for the second (mediational) hypothesis. The results suggest that those higher in PGI experience less social anxiety in part by maintaining lower self-discrepancies.

Agentic personality characteristics and coping: Their relation to trait anxiety in college students.

Anxiety and its disorders, often present before adulthood, have high personal and societal costs for men and women. This study tested a mediation model in which 3 forms of coping mediate the relation of 3 agentic personality characteristics (i.e., traits associated with the belief that people can effectively exercise control over their lives) to lower levels of anxiety within 1 subgroup of young adults (i.e., college students). The agentic personality characteristics were (a) hardiness, (b) personal growth initiative, and (c) coping self-efficacy. The forms of dispositional coping were (a) problem-focused, (b) emotion-focused, and (c) avoidant. Results suggest that agentic personality characteristics differentially relate to forms of coping and trait anxiety. In addition, coping appears to fully mediate the relations of the personality characteristics to anxiety. The results imply that agentic personality characteristics and coping are important in decreasing and/or protecting against anxiety, in part because of how they relate to forms of coping, and suggest the need for more research.

Intentional Growth Training: Developing an Intervention to Increase Personal Growth Initiative

BACKGROUND A one-week intervention (Intentional Growth Training; IGT) to increase personal growth initiative (PGI) was created and tested in a series of studies to determine its effect on PGI level. Because PGI predicts psychological well-being and depression, IGT has potential to have considerable benefit on a persons mental health. METHODS Study 1 was the initial assessment of whether IGT increased PGI greater than various control conditions. Study 2 employed an enhanced version of IGT and utilised the singular components of IGT determining which components were most impactful at increasing PGI. Study 3 was a narrative analysis of writing samples from Study 2 determining whether participant language varied by condition in use of negative or positive emotion, or personal growth-related words. RESULTS In Study 1, PGI increased significantly across conditions. In Study 2, the growth activity only condition, and PGI education coupled with the growth activity, produced significant increases in PGI. In Study 3, those receiving only PGI education used more growth-related words than control conditions. CONCLUSION The most effective IGT format appears to include both education about PGI and a growth activity. The benefits of utilising IGT are discussed.

The cultural lens approach to evaluating cultural validity of psychological theory.

In this article, we introduce the cultural lens approach (CLA), a novel approach to evaluating the extent to which a psychological theory applies across cultural groups. The CLA requires scholars to apply their accumulated knowledge about cultural influences and differences (e.g., independent and interdependent self-construals; Markus & Kitayama, 1991) to the ways in which theoretical propositions are interpreted and operationalized. First we highlight three limitations in existing approaches to cultural validity and the ways in which the CLA addresses these limitations. Next, we articulate the five steps involved in the CLA and apply it to three different theories from social, vocational, and positive psychology to demonstrate its broad utility. In all cases, we highlight how applying the CLA can generate multiple novel testable hypotheses to stimulate future research and to advance knowledge that is culturally sensitive.

Life/Career Renewal: An Intervention for Vocational and Other Life Transitions

Super (1990) defined the life-space as “the constellation of positions occupied and roles played by a person” (p. 2181, and stated that these positions and roles combine to create the individual’s career. Career counseling can be thought of as the process by which counselors help people to explore the meanings of these roles, implement their selfconcepts within these roles, and balance them in a way which is satisfying to the individual. People often need help with these tasks when external changes occur in their lives, for example, being laid off from a job, or when internal changes occur, such as moving into the disengagement stage in the worker role during mid-life due to dissatisfaction with one’s vocational choice. While these examples illustrate external and internal changes affecting the worker roIe, specifically, it is important to note that similar types of transitions can occur in any of the life roles which Super considered to be part of our “careers.” Much has been written regarding the needs of adults who are in transition. Heppner, Multon, and Johnston (1994) addressed the need for specific psychological resources to cope effectively with career transitions. Several writers have highlighted the importance of clarifying values (e.g., Brown, 1995; Hagberg & Leider, 1978). Others have emphasized issues of purpose in life (Riverin-Simard, 1988), present and future planning (Bejian & Salomone, 19951, and a focus on all life roles, not just work roles (Savickas, 1993). These emphases are broader than the content of any specific life transition. For example, it is important to be aware of life values

Multidimensional family functioning: Predicting personal growth initiative.

This study examined the relationship between multidimensional family functioning and personal growth initiative (PGI). Three higher order family-functioning clusters (i.e., Family Processes, Family Organization, and Personal Growth) were assessed as predictors of PGI. Participants were college students: 165 men and 171 women. In hierarchical regression for men, Family Processes and Family Organization accounted for significant unique portions of the variance in PGI. For women, Family Processes and Personal Growth accounted for significant unique portions of the variance in PGI. The family-functioning clusters accounted for 26% and 21% of the variance in PGI for men and women, respectively. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Personal growth initiative and identity formation in adolescence through young adulthood: mediating processes on the pathway to well-being.

Developing a personal identity is a challenging task throughout adolescence and the transition to adulthood. The present study sampling 551 14-35 year olds (54.1% female) examined personal growth initiative (PGI) as a potential predictor of core identity processes and explored whether identity functioned as a mediator on the pathway from PGI to self-esteem and depressive symptoms. Path analyses from a structural equation modeling approach indicated that all four components of PGI (i.e., planfulness, readiness for change, intentional behavior, and using resources) predicted different commitment and exploration processes, with planfulness being the most consistent predictor. Important age differences linking PGI-components to identity exploration were found. Finally, especially the degree to which individuals identified themselves with their identity commitments and the degree to which they relied on ruminative or maladaptive forms of identity exploration mediated pathways from PGI to self-esteem and depressive symptoms. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.