An examination of the higher-order dimensionality and psychometric properties of a Romanian translation of the schizotypal personality questionnaire (SPQ)

The Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire (SPQ) is a self-report measure of schizotypal personality traits, but the higher-order dimensionality of its scores continues to be debated. As a contribution to this debate, we examined the psychometric properties of a Romanian translation of the SPQ. A total of 711 university students (488 women, 223 men) from Romania completed a novel translation of the SPQ alongside measures of quality of life, self-esteem, and life satisfaction. Confirmatory factor analysis suggested that a 4-factor model of SPQ scores had better fit to the data than alternative models. The 4-factor model also demonstrated partial measurement invariance across sex, although sex differences on domain scores were negligible (eta(2)(p) = 0.01-0.02). Romanian SPQ scores evidenced adequate construct and concurrent validity vis-a-vis quality of life, satisfaction with life, and self-esteem. Our results provide support for a 4-factor conceptualisation of SPQ scores in a hitherto neglected linguistic group.