Cross-cultural validity of the five items Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS-5) in Peru and Mexico during the COVID-19 pandemic

• Published in: Psicologia, reflexão e crítica reflexão e crítica, 2022-05, Vol.35 (1), p.12-12, Article 12
• Main Authors: Reyes-Bossio, Mario, Zapparigli, Emilio Lafferrnaderie, Caycho-Rodríguez, Tomás, Carbajal-León, Carlos, Castaman, Luis Alberto Olavarria, Pino, Giovana Lourdes Hernandez, Sanchez, Raymundo Calderon, Barbosa-Granados, Sergio
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Behavioral Science and Psychology; Biological Psychology; COVID-19; Cross-cultural; Developmental Psychology; Health Psychology; Invariance; Mexico; Mindfulness; Peru; PHYSICS, MULTIDISCIPLINARY; Psychological assessment; Psychological Methods/Evaluation; Psychology; Psychology Research; Psychometrics; University students
• ISSN: 0102-7972; 1678-7153; 1678-7153
• DOI: 10.1186/s41155-022-00218-y

The Spanish version of the 5-item Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS-5) is a brief measure of the general tendency to be attentive and aware of experiences in the present moment during daily life. The MAAS-5 has been used in different countries; however, an assessment of its cross-cultural measurement invariance (MI) has not been conducted. Therefore, the study aimed to evaluate the cross-cultural measurement invariance of the MAAS-5 in university students from two countries: Peru and Mexico. A total of 1144 university students from Peru ( N = 822) and Mexico ( N = 322) responded online to the Spanish version of the 5-item Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS-5). A multigroup confirmatory factor analysis was performed. Measurement invariance tests the hypothesis that the model behind a set of scores is comparable between groups. The results showed that the unidimensional structure of the MAAS-5 is the same between Peruvian and Mexican university students. Therefore, it is suggested that university students from both countries conceptualize the mindfulness in a similar way. As a result, the MAAS-5 can be used to compare differences between countries. No significant differences were observed in the MAAS-5 score between Peruvian and Mexican university students. The present study contributes to a better understanding of the psychometric properties of the MAAS-5 by presenting MI results in two Latin American countries. Implications of the findings are discussed, which will facilitate a more solid and reliable use of the MAAS-5 in future cross-cultural studies.