Emotional Flow Scale (EFS)

Abstract

The Emotional Flow Scale (EFS) was developed to measure the experienced changes in one’s emotions over the course of a media message. The scale’s content was first derived from the initial theorizing by Nabi and Green (2015) and subsequently underwent psychometric validation. The final 6-item EFS was assessed in multiple samples that included university students and adult participants from online research platforms. The results for factor analysis, reliability, and validity were reported for these items.

Keywords

Dynamic Emotional Experiences, Emotional Flow, Media Message Exposure, Nabi and Green Theorizing, Messages, Theories, Media Exposure, Emotional State Measures, Emotional Processing

Authors

Fitzgerald, K.; Francemone, C. J.; Green, M. C.; Grizzard, M.; Frazer, R.

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Purpose

The purpose of this scale is to assess self-reported experiences of emotional flow following exposure to a message.

Construct

Emotional Processing

Validity

Evidence of construct validity was supported through an experimental study that manipulated and assessed emotional shifts during exposure to media content. The findings indicated that the scale was able to effectively account for these emotional shifts.

Reliability

Regarding internal consistency, the Cronbach’s alpha was reported to be .92, a value based on the factor analysis results.

Factor Analysis

An initial Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) suggested that a single-factor solution best fit the data. Consequently, the authors conducted a second EFA, constraining the factor extraction to one factor. This single factor explained 59.39% of the total variance. Following this, the authors engaged in Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), using an iterative process of selective item retention to refine the measurement model and achieve a good fit. Through this process, items 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 11, 13, 14, 15, and 18 were removed from the initial pool. This resulted in a 6-item, single-factor measurement model that demonstrated good fit (χ2 = 114.34, p < .001, RMSEA =.08 [Lower CI =.06, Upper CI =.09], CFI =.99, SRMR =.02). Additionally, Measurement Invariance tests supported the stability of the scale across different types of stimuli (written versus audio-visual narrative), participant sex and age, and two different sample populations (student versus non-student).

Instrument

• Test Type: Original, Rating Scale

• Format: No data is Available

• Language Available: English

• Population Group: Human; Male; Female

• Age Group: Adulthood (18 yrs & older)

• Population Details: Location: United States; Respondents: University Students; Online Adult Participants

• Test Methodology: Test Validity; Construct Validity; Test Reliability; Internal Consistency; Factor Analysis; Confirmatory Factor Analysis; Exploratory Factor Analysis; Measurement Invariance

Keywords

Dynamic Emotional Experiences, Emotional Flow, Media Message Exposure, Nabi and Green Theorizing, Messages, Theories, Media Exposure, Emotional State Measures, Emotional Processing

Authors

• Fitzgerald, K.

  • Author ocrid Identifier: No data is Available

  • Affiliation: Cornell University, College of Human Ecology

  • Email addresses: [email protected]

• Francemone, C. J.

  • Author ocrid Identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3075-4412

  • Affiliation: Ohio State University, School of Communication

  • Email addresses: No data is Available

• Green, M. C.

  • Author ocrid Identifier: No data is Available

  • Affiliation: University at Buffalo, Department of Communication

  • Email addresses: No data is Available

• Grizzard, M.

  • Author ocrid Identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2883-0308

  • Affiliation: Ohio State University, School of Communication

  • Email addresses: No data is Available

• Frazer, R.

  • Author ocrid Identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0443-3113

  • Affiliation: Ohio State University, School of Communication

  • Email addresses: No data is Available

• Correspondence Address: Fitzgerald, K.: Cornell University, College of Human Ecology, 202 Overlook Rd, Ithaca, New York, United States, 14850, [email protected]

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

• Commercial: No

• Fee: No

• Test Year: 2023

reference’s

Fitzgerald, K., Francemone, C. J., Green, M. C., Grizzard, M., & Frazer, R. (2023). The Emotional Flow Scale: Validating a measure of dynamic emotional experiences in message reception. Media Psychology, 26(6), 790–811. https://doi.org/10.1080/15213269.2023.2215447

Items of the Emotional Flow Scale

This is a 6-item scale. The specific items are available for review in the source publication located in Table 3 on page 798.