Measuring a new facet of post traumatic growth: development of a scale of physical post traumatic growth in men with prostate cancer

Abstract

Purpose This study developed a measure of physical post traumatic growth (physical post traumatic growth inventory; P-PTGI) in men with prostate cancer. Methods A pool of items was created from themes identified in a qualitative study. A quantitative study was then conducted to assess the psychometric properties of the P-PTGI in a sample of 693 prostate cancer survivors. Results Tests of dimensionality revealed that the 20-item P-PTGI contained two factors: Health Autonomy and Health Awareness. Results demonstrated that scale score reliability for the P-PTGI and its subscales was excellent. In support of the scale's convergent validity, scores on the P-PTGI correlated positively with mindfulness and quality of life, and correlated negatively with depression and anxiety. A statistically significant correlation between the P-PTGI and another robust indicator of post traumatic growth attests to its concurrent validity. Conclusions While further investigation of the P-PTGI's psychometric properties is required, preliminary findings are promising.