Factor Structure of the Self-Regulation Questionnaire (SRQ) at Spanish Universities

• Published in: The Spanish journal of psychology 2014-01, Vol.17, p.E62-E62, Article E62
• Main Authors: Pichardo, Carmen, Justicia, Fernando, Fuente, Jesús de la, Martínez-Vicente, José Manuel, Berbén, Ana B. G.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Academic achievement; Adaptation, Psychological; Adolescent; Adult; Confirmatory factor analysis; Decision making; Education; Educational Status; Exploratory factor analysis; Factor Analysis, Statistical; Female; Goal setting; Happiness; Humans; Learning; Male; Measurement; Mental depression; Methodology and Psychometrics; Middle Aged; Psychological well being; Psychology; Quantitative psychology; Questionnaires; Self concept; Self control; Self evaluation; Self regulation; Spain; Students; Students - psychology; Surveys and Questionnaires; Universities - statistics & numerical data; Well being; Young Adult
• ISSN: 1138-7416; 1988-2904
• DOI: 10.1017/sjp.2014.63

The Self-Regulation Questionnaire (SRQ) has been used in psychology research during the last decade. The instrument has been used in a variety of life domains: psychological well-being, dispositional happiness, depressive symptoms and career adaptability. This investigation studies the factor structure and internal consistency of the SRQ, extracting a short version in the Spanish context and examining its relation to academic variables (self-regulated learning and grades). The analysis started from a version with 63 items, representing seven conceptual dimensions. This version was administered to a sample of 834 students from Education and Psychology. The data from the above-mentioned sample were randomly divided into two sets, each containing 50% of the students (n = 417): exploratory and confirmatory. In the exploratory sample, exploratory factor analysis findings suggested a more parsimonious measurement model, with 17 items and 4 first-order factors. The confirmatory sample was used in the confirmatory factor analysis. The results show evidence for the internal consistency of the Short Self-Regulation Questionnaire (SSRQ) in the Spanish context, with indices greater than .90 and errors around .05. Regarding academic variables, both versions are related to self-regulated learning (r = .40, p < .01) and students’ grades (r = .15, p < .01). Differences from other studies done in North America are discussed, as well as similarities to a study from North-West University (in South Africa).