Abnormal Psychology Misconceptions Questionnaire (APMQ)

Abnormal Psychology Misconceptions Questionnaire (APMQ) Review

Description

The Abnormal Psychology Misconceptions Questionnaire (APMQ; Basterfield et al., 2023) is a survey designed to assess a wide range of inaccurate beliefs about mental illness. It was developed for a study investigating the prevalence, correlates, and instructional implications of mental illness misconceptions among undergraduate students. The APMQ addresses a need for an up-to-date survey of current misconceptions in this population. There are two versions of the APMQ (versions A and B), with each item phrased both negatively and positively, and the number of negatively and positively worded items counterbalanced across versions. Each version contains 105 True/False items and 8 validity items, which are designed to be extremely easy to ensure respondents are reading items carefully. The myths included in the APMQ were drawn from sources such as Lilienfeld et al.’s (2011) book on psychological misconceptions, Furnham’s work (e.g., Furnham, 2018; Furnham & Hughes, 2014) on psychological misconceptions, and other basic sources on abnormal psychology myths (e.g., Wahl, 1995). This measure was administered to a U.S. sample of introductory psychology undergraduate students. Reliability and validity results were reported in the source study.

Purpose

The purpose of this measure is to assess a broad spectrum of inaccurate beliefs regarding mental illness and its treatment.

Validity

It was found that compared with other students, students who endorse mental illness misconceptions tend to possess weaker critical thinking skills, are more inclined to accept paranormal claims, and are less likely to endorse scientific and behavioral views of psychology.

Reliability

Internal Consistency: The internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha) was .83 (mean interitem r = .04) for the Misconceptions A measure, and .84 (mean interitem r = .05) for the Misconceptions B measure. This finding suggested that the questionnaire, although internally consistent given its length, is not highly homogeneous.

Factor Analysis

No data is Available.

Instrument

• Test Type: Original

• Format: Responses are provided using a True/False format (a “don’t know” option is not provided). Items are coded so that higher scores reflect a greater endorsement of misconceptions. The authors suggested that future studies consider using a Likert-type format to allow researchers to detect false beliefs held with differing levels of conviction. The administration method is paper-based.

• Language Available: English

• Population Group: Human (Male, Female)

• Age Group: Adolescence (13-17 yrs), Adulthood (18 yrs & older), Young Adulthood (18-29 yrs)

• Population Details: Respondents were undergraduate students located in the United States.

• Test Methodology: Test Validity, Construct Validity, Test Reliability, Internal Consistency

Keywords

Abnormal Psychology, Erroneous Beliefs, False Beliefs, False Information, Inaccurate Beliefs, Mental Health Treatment, Mental Illness, Myths, Psychological Misconceptions.

Authors

• Basterfield, Candice:

  • Author ORCID Identifier: orcid.org/0000-0002-2736-5216

  • Affiliation: Emory University, Emory University School of Medicine Department of Rehabilitation Medicine

  • Email Address: [email protected]

• Lilienfeld, Scott O.:

  • Affiliation: Emory University, Department of Psychology

• Cautin, Robin L.:

  • Affiliation: Sacred Heart University, Department of Psychology

• Jordan, Dylan:

  • Affiliation: Zillow Group

• Correspondence Address: Basterfield, Candice: Emory University, Emory University School of Medicine, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, 1441 Clifton Road, Atlanta, Georgia, United States, 30322, [email protected]

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

• Permissions: Contact Corresponding Author

• Fee: No

• Test Year: 2023

References

Basterfield, C., Lilienfeld, S. O., Cautin, R. L., & Jordan, D. (2023). Mental illness misconceptions among undergraduates: Prevalence, correlates, and instructional implications. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology, 9(2), 115–132. doi:10.1037/stl0000221

Items of the Abnormal Psychology Misconceptions Questionnaire

• Number of items: This measure consists of 105 scored items and 8 validity items.

• Test Items Available: No file is available.