F59. THE STRUCTURE OF THE PRODROMAL QUESTIONNAIRE-16 (PQ-16): EXPLORATORY AND CONFIRMATORY FACTOR ANALYSES IN A GENERAL NON-HELP-SEEKING POPULATION SAMPLE

• Published in: Schizophrenia bulletin 2019-04, Vol.45 (Supplement_2), p.S277-S277
• Main Authors: Howie, Clare, Hanna, Donncha, Shannon, Ciaran, Davidson, Gavin, Mulholland, Ciaran
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Poster Session II
• ISSN: 0586-7614; 1745-1701
• DOI: 10.1093/schbul/sbz018.471

Abstract Background The Prodromal Questionnaire-16 (PQ-16; Ising et al., 2012) is a measure used to screen for attenuated psychotic symptoms that may indicate the presence of the at-risk mental state. The PQ-16 has been validated for use in help-seeking populations and the structure of the measure in this population is categorized by three subscales. These are perceptual abnormalities/hallucinations subscale, the unusual thought content/paranoia subscale, and negative symptoms subscale. The present study aimed to examine the structure of the PQ-16 in a non-help-seeking population through exploratory factor analysis and a confirmatory factor analysis. Methods Participants (n=722) were recruited through Amazon’s Mechanical Turk (MTurk) and completed the PQ-16 as part of a battery of questionnaires. For the exploratory factor analysis, the mean age of the sample was 27.93 years (SD=4.8), 55% of the sample were male, and 49% were single. The exploratory factor analysis, using principal axis factoring and oblique rotation, indicated a two-factor model was suitable for the PQ-16 in this population. Based on the current study and previous studies, three separate confirmatory factor models will be analyzed using SPSS Amos Version 25. Results The exploratory factor analysis indicated that there was a two-factor model suitable for this sample. Factor 1 appeared to represent perceptual abnormalities/hallucinations, while factor 2 was interpreted as general symptoms. Factor loadings indicated that items 2 & 14 of the PQ-16 did not fit into either factor and were excluded from the two-factor confirmatory factor model. Exploratory factor analysis has been completed, and confirmatory factor analysis of the PQ-16 in a similar non-help-seeking population is underway. Discussion The exploratory factor analysis indicated that a two-factor model is suitable for this sample (Factor 1 representing perceptual abnormalities/hallucinations; factor 2 representing general symptoms). The confirmatory factor analysis will allow us to explore what model is the best fit for the PQ-16 in this population.