The perceived vulnerability to disease scale: Cross-cultural measurement invariance and associations with fear of COVID-19 across 16 countries

Arzu Karakulak; Maria Stogianni; Itziar Alonso-Arbiol; Shanu Shukla; Michael Bender; Victoria Wai Lan Yeung; Veljko Jovanović; Pasquale Musso; Rosa Scardigno; Riley A. Scott; Jaimee Stuart; Maria Therese Friehs; Zena Toh; Nihan Albayrak-Aydemir; Alexios Arvanitis; Carmen Buzea; Stefanos Mastrotheodoros; Jo Ann Tsang; Filipa Madeira; Diana Miconi; Nicole Russell Pascual; Wade C. Rowatt; Rosemary L. Al-Kire; Moty Amar; Tugce Aral; Guy Itzchakov; Sushanta Kumar Mishra; Roni Porat; Rocco Servidio; Delia Stefenel; Ergyul Tair; Alexandros Gkomez

doi:10.1111/spc3.12878

The perceived vulnerability to disease scale: Cross-cultural measurement invariance and associations with fear of COVID-19 across 16 countries

Arzu Karakulak^*, Maria Stogianni, Itziar Alonso-Arbiol, Shanu Shukla, Michael Bender, Victoria Wai Lan Yeung, Veljko Jovanović, Pasquale Musso, Rosa Scardigno, Riley A. Scott, Jaimee Stuart, Maria Therese Friehs, Zena Toh, Nihan Albayrak-Aydemir, Alexios Arvanitis, Carmen Buzea, Stefanos Mastrotheodoros, Jo Ann Tsang, Filipa Madeira, Diana MiconiNicole Russell Pascual, Wade C. Rowatt, Rosemary L. Al-Kire, Moty Amar, Tugce Aral, Guy Itzchakov, Sushanta Kumar Mishra, Roni Porat, Rocco Servidio, Delia Stefenel, Ergyul Tair, Alexandros Gkomez

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

Using cross-sectional data from N = 4274 young adults across 16 countries during the COVID-19 pandemic, we examined the cross-cultural measurement invariance of the perceived vulnerability to disease (PVD) scale and tested the hypothesis that the association between PVD and fear of COVID-19 is stronger under high disease threat [that is, absence of COVID-19 vaccination, living in a country with lower Human Development Index (HDI) or higher COVID-19 mortality]. Results supported a bi-factor Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling model where items loaded on a global PVD factor, and on the sub-factors of Perceived Infectability and Germ Aversion. However, cross-national invariance could only be obtained on the configural level with a reduced version of the PVD scale (PVD-r), suggesting that the concept of PVD may vary across nations. Moreover, higher PVD-r was consistently associated with greater fear of COVID-19 across all levels of disease threat, but this association was especially pronounced among individuals with a COVID-19 vaccine, and in contexts where COVID-19 mortality was high. The present research brought clarity into the dimensionality of the PVD measure, discussed its suitability and limitations for cross-cultural research, and highlighted the pandemic-related conditions under which higher PVD is most likely to go along with psychologically maladaptive outcomes, such as fear of COVID-19.

Original language	American English
Journal	Social and Personality Psychology Compass
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1111/spc3.12878
State	Accepted/In press - 2023

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
The authors thank Eric Kenson Yau, Christiane Kraus, and Melis Yetkin for their help in data collection in Hong Kong, Germany, and Türkiye, respectively. The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: Arzu Karakulak acknowledges the support of the Istanbul Policy Center ‐ Sabanci University‐ Stiftung Mercator Initiative. Itziar Alonso‐Arbiol acknowledges the support of the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (PID2020‐115738GB‐I00) and Basque Government Group Consolidation (IT1598‐22). Shanu Shukla acknowledges the support of the NPO "Systemic Risk Institute" number LX22NPO5101, funded by the European Union–Next Generation EU (Ministry of Education, Youth, and Sports, NPO: EXCELES). Nicole Russell Pascual acknowledges the support of the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC).

Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 The Authors. Social and Personality Psychology Compass published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Keywords

culture
disease threat
fear of COVID-19
measurement invariance
perceived vulnerability to disease

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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10.1111/spc3.12878

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Karakulak, A., Stogianni, M., Alonso-Arbiol, I., Shukla, S., Bender, M., Yeung, V. W. L., Jovanović, V., Musso, P., Scardigno, R., Scott, R. A., Stuart, J., Friehs, M. T., Toh, Z., Albayrak-Aydemir, N., Arvanitis, A., Buzea, C., Mastrotheodoros, S., Tsang, J. A., Madeira, F., ... Gkomez, A. (Accepted/In press). The perceived vulnerability to disease scale: Cross-cultural measurement invariance and associations with fear of COVID-19 across 16 countries. Social and Personality Psychology Compass. https://doi.org/10.1111/spc3.12878

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title = "The perceived vulnerability to disease scale: Cross-cultural measurement invariance and associations with fear of COVID-19 across 16 countries",

abstract = "Using cross-sectional data from N = 4274 young adults across 16 countries during the COVID-19 pandemic, we examined the cross-cultural measurement invariance of the perceived vulnerability to disease (PVD) scale and tested the hypothesis that the association between PVD and fear of COVID-19 is stronger under high disease threat [that is, absence of COVID-19 vaccination, living in a country with lower Human Development Index (HDI) or higher COVID-19 mortality]. Results supported a bi-factor Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling model where items loaded on a global PVD factor, and on the sub-factors of Perceived Infectability and Germ Aversion. However, cross-national invariance could only be obtained on the configural level with a reduced version of the PVD scale (PVD-r), suggesting that the concept of PVD may vary across nations. Moreover, higher PVD-r was consistently associated with greater fear of COVID-19 across all levels of disease threat, but this association was especially pronounced among individuals with a COVID-19 vaccine, and in contexts where COVID-19 mortality was high. The present research brought clarity into the dimensionality of the PVD measure, discussed its suitability and limitations for cross-cultural research, and highlighted the pandemic-related conditions under which higher PVD is most likely to go along with psychologically maladaptive outcomes, such as fear of COVID-19.",

keywords = "culture, disease threat, fear of COVID-19, measurement invariance, perceived vulnerability to disease",

author = "Arzu Karakulak and Maria Stogianni and Itziar Alonso-Arbiol and Shanu Shukla and Michael Bender and Yeung, {Victoria Wai Lan} and Veljko Jovanovi{\'c} and Pasquale Musso and Rosa Scardigno and Scott, {Riley A.} and Jaimee Stuart and Friehs, {Maria Therese} and Zena Toh and Nihan Albayrak-Aydemir and Alexios Arvanitis and Carmen Buzea and Stefanos Mastrotheodoros and Tsang, {Jo Ann} and Filipa Madeira and Diana Miconi and Pascual, {Nicole Russell} and Rowatt, {Wade C.} and Al-Kire, {Rosemary L.} and Moty Amar and Tugce Aral and Guy Itzchakov and Mishra, {Sushanta Kumar} and Roni Porat and Rocco Servidio and Delia Stefenel and Ergyul Tair and Alexandros Gkomez",

note = "Funding Information: The authors thank Eric Kenson Yau, Christiane Kraus, and Melis Yetkin for their help in data collection in Hong Kong, Germany, and T{\"u}rkiye, respectively. The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: Arzu Karakulak acknowledges the support of the Istanbul Policy Center ‐ Sabanci University‐ Stiftung Mercator Initiative. Itziar Alonso‐Arbiol acknowledges the support of the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (PID2020‐115738GB‐I00) and Basque Government Group Consolidation (IT1598‐22). Shanu Shukla acknowledges the support of the NPO {"}Systemic Risk Institute{"} number LX22NPO5101, funded by the European Union–Next Generation EU (Ministry of Education, Youth, and Sports, NPO: EXCELES). Nicole Russell Pascual acknowledges the support of the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2023 The Authors. Social and Personality Psychology Compass published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.",

year = "2023",

doi = "10.1111/spc3.12878",

language = "American English",

journal = "Social and Personality Psychology Compass",

issn = "1751-9004",

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Karakulak, A, Stogianni, M, Alonso-Arbiol, I, Shukla, S, Bender, M, Yeung, VWL, Jovanović, V, Musso, P, Scardigno, R, Scott, RA, Stuart, J, Friehs, MT, Toh, Z, Albayrak-Aydemir, N, Arvanitis, A, Buzea, C, Mastrotheodoros, S, Tsang, JA, Madeira, F, Miconi, D, Pascual, NR, Rowatt, WC, Al-Kire, RL, Amar, M, Aral, T, Itzchakov, G, Mishra, SK, Porat, R, Servidio, R, Stefenel, D, Tair, E & Gkomez, A 2023, 'The perceived vulnerability to disease scale: Cross-cultural measurement invariance and associations with fear of COVID-19 across 16 countries', Social and Personality Psychology Compass. https://doi.org/10.1111/spc3.12878

TY - JOUR

T1 - The perceived vulnerability to disease scale

T2 - Cross-cultural measurement invariance and associations with fear of COVID-19 across 16 countries

AU - Karakulak, Arzu

AU - Stogianni, Maria

AU - Alonso-Arbiol, Itziar

AU - Shukla, Shanu

AU - Bender, Michael

AU - Yeung, Victoria Wai Lan

AU - Jovanović, Veljko

AU - Musso, Pasquale

AU - Scardigno, Rosa

AU - Scott, Riley A.

AU - Stuart, Jaimee

AU - Friehs, Maria Therese

AU - Toh, Zena

AU - Albayrak-Aydemir, Nihan

AU - Arvanitis, Alexios

AU - Buzea, Carmen

AU - Mastrotheodoros, Stefanos

AU - Tsang, Jo Ann

AU - Madeira, Filipa

AU - Miconi, Diana

AU - Pascual, Nicole Russell

AU - Rowatt, Wade C.

AU - Al-Kire, Rosemary L.

AU - Amar, Moty

AU - Aral, Tugce

AU - Itzchakov, Guy

AU - Mishra, Sushanta Kumar

AU - Porat, Roni

AU - Servidio, Rocco

AU - Stefenel, Delia

AU - Tair, Ergyul

AU - Gkomez, Alexandros

N1 - Funding Information: The authors thank Eric Kenson Yau, Christiane Kraus, and Melis Yetkin for their help in data collection in Hong Kong, Germany, and Türkiye, respectively. The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: Arzu Karakulak acknowledges the support of the Istanbul Policy Center ‐ Sabanci University‐ Stiftung Mercator Initiative. Itziar Alonso‐Arbiol acknowledges the support of the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (PID2020‐115738GB‐I00) and Basque Government Group Consolidation (IT1598‐22). Shanu Shukla acknowledges the support of the NPO "Systemic Risk Institute" number LX22NPO5101, funded by the European Union–Next Generation EU (Ministry of Education, Youth, and Sports, NPO: EXCELES). Nicole Russell Pascual acknowledges the support of the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). Publisher Copyright: © 2023 The Authors. Social and Personality Psychology Compass published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

PY - 2023

Y1 - 2023

N2 - Using cross-sectional data from N = 4274 young adults across 16 countries during the COVID-19 pandemic, we examined the cross-cultural measurement invariance of the perceived vulnerability to disease (PVD) scale and tested the hypothesis that the association between PVD and fear of COVID-19 is stronger under high disease threat [that is, absence of COVID-19 vaccination, living in a country with lower Human Development Index (HDI) or higher COVID-19 mortality]. Results supported a bi-factor Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling model where items loaded on a global PVD factor, and on the sub-factors of Perceived Infectability and Germ Aversion. However, cross-national invariance could only be obtained on the configural level with a reduced version of the PVD scale (PVD-r), suggesting that the concept of PVD may vary across nations. Moreover, higher PVD-r was consistently associated with greater fear of COVID-19 across all levels of disease threat, but this association was especially pronounced among individuals with a COVID-19 vaccine, and in contexts where COVID-19 mortality was high. The present research brought clarity into the dimensionality of the PVD measure, discussed its suitability and limitations for cross-cultural research, and highlighted the pandemic-related conditions under which higher PVD is most likely to go along with psychologically maladaptive outcomes, such as fear of COVID-19.

AB - Using cross-sectional data from N = 4274 young adults across 16 countries during the COVID-19 pandemic, we examined the cross-cultural measurement invariance of the perceived vulnerability to disease (PVD) scale and tested the hypothesis that the association between PVD and fear of COVID-19 is stronger under high disease threat [that is, absence of COVID-19 vaccination, living in a country with lower Human Development Index (HDI) or higher COVID-19 mortality]. Results supported a bi-factor Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling model where items loaded on a global PVD factor, and on the sub-factors of Perceived Infectability and Germ Aversion. However, cross-national invariance could only be obtained on the configural level with a reduced version of the PVD scale (PVD-r), suggesting that the concept of PVD may vary across nations. Moreover, higher PVD-r was consistently associated with greater fear of COVID-19 across all levels of disease threat, but this association was especially pronounced among individuals with a COVID-19 vaccine, and in contexts where COVID-19 mortality was high. The present research brought clarity into the dimensionality of the PVD measure, discussed its suitability and limitations for cross-cultural research, and highlighted the pandemic-related conditions under which higher PVD is most likely to go along with psychologically maladaptive outcomes, such as fear of COVID-19.

KW - culture

KW - disease threat

KW - fear of COVID-19

KW - measurement invariance

KW - perceived vulnerability to disease

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U2 - 10.1111/spc3.12878

DO - 10.1111/spc3.12878

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85169126110

SN - 1751-9004

JO - Social and Personality Psychology Compass

JF - Social and Personality Psychology Compass

ER -

The perceived vulnerability to disease scale: Cross-cultural measurement invariance and associations with fear of COVID-19 across 16 countries

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

UN SDGs

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