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Introduction: The presence of fear of an infectious disease triggers psychological factors associated with perceived behavioral control over vaccination acceptance, subjective norms of vaccination acceptance, attitudes toward vaccination acceptance, and perceived infectiousness from disease. Objective: The study evaluated how symptoms of fear of Monkeypox specifically relate to intention to be vaccinated against Monkeypox in a sample of 506 Peruvian individuals with a mean age of 27.11 years (SD = 9.77). Methods: Participants responded to the Monkeypox Fear Scale (MFS) and a single item of Intention to be vaccinated against Monkeypox. Using network analysis, central fear symptoms and associations between symptoms and intention to vaccinate were identified. Results: The results suggest that the node with the highest centrality was item 5 of the MFS. Regarding the connection between the intention to be vaccinated and the MFS items, a direct relationship was observed with item 1 and an inverse relationship with item 6. In addition, the relationship between these MFS items and intention to vaccinate is higher in men compared to women. While it would be expected that a greater presence of symptoms of fear of Monkeypox could lead people to have a greater intention to be vaccinated against the disease, the results could lead other researchers to generate evidence to explain this relationship in other Latin American countries. Discussion: The evidence is useful for developing policies that favor vaccination against Monkeypox in Peru and other Latin American countries.

Introducción: La presencia del miedo a una enfermedad infecciosa desencadena factores psicológicos asociados con el control conductual percibido sobre la aceptación de la vacunación, normas subjetivas de aceptación de la vacunación, actitudes hacia la aceptación de la vacunación y la percepción de la infectividad de la enfermedad. Objetivo: El estudio evaluó cómo los síntomas del miedo a la viruela del mono se relacionan específicamente con la intención de ser vacunado contra la viruela del mono en una muestra de 506 individuos peruanos con una edad promedio de 27,11 años (DE = 9,77). Métodos: Los participantes respondieron a la Escala de Miedo a la Viruela del Mono (MFS) y a un solo ítem de Intención de ser vacunado contra la viruela del mono. Utilizando análisis de redes, se identificaron los síntomas centrales del miedo y las asociaciones entre los síntomas y la intención de vacunarse. Resultados: Los resultados sugieren que el nodo con mayor centralidad fue el ítem 5 de la MFS. En cuanto a la conexión entre la intención de ser vacunado y los ítems de la MFS, se observó una relación directa con el ítem 1 y una relación inversa con el ítem 6. Además, la relación entre estos ítems de la MFS y la intención de vacunarse es mayor en hombres en comparación con mujeres. Si bien se esperaría que una mayor presencia de síntomas de miedo a la viruela del mono llevara a las personas a tener una mayor intención de ser vacunadas contra la enfermedad, los resultados podrían llevar a otros investigadores a generar evidencia para explicar esta relación en otros países de América Latina. Discusión: La evidencia es útil para desarrollar políticas que favorezcan la vacunación contra la viruela del mono en Perú y otros países de América Latina.

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OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to identify predictors of intention to be vaccinated against Monkeypox (Mpox) in a sample of Peruvian citizens.  METHODS: A set of sociodemographic and psychological predictors were used, such as sex, sexual orientation, educational level, previous diagnosis of COVID-19, marital status, complete vaccination against COVID-19, employment status, living with vulnerable people, presence of chronic disease, area of residence, perceived usefulness of COVID-19 vaccines, fear of Mpox, conspiracy beliefs about Mpox, among others. A total of 472 Peruvian adults participated, selected by non-probabilistic snowball convenience sampling. A sociodemographic survey, the Mpox Fear Scale, was used. Conspiracy Beliefs about Mpox was assessed using three questions created specifically for this study. For inferential purposes, simple ordinal regressions ("crude models") were performed between each factor and the outcome.  RESULTS: Regarding their intention to be vaccinated against Mpox, more than 60% expressed clear approval. Being non-heterosexual, having greater emotional fear of Mpox, and perceiving some potential for this disease to become the next pandemic were related to greater intention to vaccinate. On the other hand, being older, having low perceived usefulness of COVID-19 vaccines, and having higher conspiracy beliefs about Mpox were associated with lower intention to vaccinate.  CONCLUSION: The study provides initial information for future research seeking to better analyze Mpox vaccination intention. In addition, cross-sectional data are provided that can be used to develop public health policies that target subgroups with low prevalence of intention to vaccinate against Mpox.

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OBJECTIVES: The present study aimed to evaluate the measurement invariance of a general measure of the perception of governmental responses to COVID-|19 (COVID-SCORE-10) in the general population of 13 Latin American countries. METHODS: A total of 5780 individuals from 13 Latin American and Caribbean countries selected by non-probabilistic snowball sampling participated. A confirmatory factor analysis was performed and the alignment method was used to evaluate invariance. Additionally, a graded response model was used for the assessment of item characteristics. RESULTS: The results indicate that there is approximate measurement invariance of the COVID-SCORE-10 among the participating countries. Furthermore, IRT results suggest that the COVID-SCORE-10 measures with good psychometric ability a broad spectrum of the construct assessed, especially around average levels. Comparison of COVID-SCORE-10 scores indicated that participants from Cuba, Uruguay and El Salvador had the most positive perceptions of government actions to address the pandemic. Thus, the underlying construct of perception of government actions was equivalent in all countries. CONCLUSION: The results show the importance of initially establishing the fundamental measurement properties and MI before inferring the cross-cultural universality of the construct to be measured.

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The present study explored the predictive capacity of fear of COVID-19 on the intention to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and the influence in this relationship of conspiracy beliefs as a possible mediating psychological variable, in 13 Latin American countries. A total of 5779 people recruited through non-probabilistic convenience sampling participated. To collect information, we used the Fear of COVID-19 Scale, Vaccine conspiracy beliefs Scale-COVID-19 and a single item of intention to vaccinate. A full a priori Structural Equation Model was used; whereas, cross-country invariance was performed from increasingly restricted structural models. The results indicated that, fear of COVID-19 positively predicts intention to vaccinate and the presence of conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 vaccines. The latter negatively predicted intention to vaccinate against COVID-19. Besides, conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 vaccines had an indirect effect on the relationship between fear of COVID-19 and intention to vaccinate against COVID-19 in the 13 countries assessed. Finally, the cross-national similarities of the mediational model among the 13 participating countries are strongly supported. The study is the first to test a cross-national mediational model across variables in a large number of Latin American countries. However, further studies with other countries in other regions of the world are needed.

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The aim of the present study was to translate into Spanish and evaluate the psychometric evidence of the Impact on Quality of Life (COV19-QoL) applied to a sample of Peruvian older adults (N = 298; 58.1% women, 41.9% men, mean age 65.34 years [SD = 11.33]). The study used techniques from the Classical Test Theory (CTT) and Item Response Theory (IRT). The findings confirmed the single factor structure of the COV19-QoL, high internal consistency reliability, measurement invariance by gender, and all items demonstrated adequate discrimination and difficulty indices. In this sense, the items allow adequate discrimination between low, medium and high levels of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on quality of life. In addition, a greater perceived impact of the pandemic on quality of life is necessary to answer the higher response options of the COV19-QoL. In conclusion, the COV19-QoL is a valid measurement scale of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the quality of life of Peruvian older adults.

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The objective of this study was to translate and psychometrically evaluate a Spanish version of the Grief Impairment Scale (GIS) using a sample of bereaved adults from El Salvador (N = 579). The results confirm the unidimensional structure of the GIS, and solid reliability, item characteristics, and criterion-related validity, where the GIS scale significantly and positively predicts depression. However, this instrument only showed evidence of configural and metric invariance between different sex groups. Overall, these results support the Spanish version of the GIS as a psychometrically sound screening tool for health professionals and researchers to use in their clinical work.

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Abstract Objectives The present study aimed to evaluate the measurement invariance of a general measure of the perception of governmental responses to COVID--19 (COVID-SCORE-10) in the general population of 13 Latin American countries. Methods A total of 5780 individuals from 13 Latin American and Caribbean countries selected by non-probabilistic snowball sampling participated. A confirmatory factor analysis was performed and the alignment method was used to evaluate invariance. Additionally, a graded response model was used for the assessment of item characteristics. Results The results indicate that there is approximate measurement invariance of the COVID-SCORE-10 among the participating countries. Furthermore, IRT results suggest that the COVID-SCORE-10 measures with good psychometric ability a broad spectrum of the construct assessed, especially around average levels. Comparison of COVID-SCORE-10 scores indicated that participants from Cuba, Uruguay and El Salvador had the most positive perceptions of government actions to address the pandemic. Thus, the underlying construct of perception of government actions was equivalent in all countries. Conclusion The results show the importance of initially establishing the fundamental measurement properties and MI before inferring the cross-cultural universality of the construct to be measured.

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Abstract The aim of the present study was to translate into Spanish and evaluate the psychometric evidence of the Impact on Quality of Life (COV19-QoL) applied to a sample of Peruvian older adults ( N = 298; 58.1% women, 41.9% men, mean age 65.34 years [SD = 11.33]). The study used techniques from the Classical Test Theory (CTT) and Item Response Theory (IRT). The findings confirmed the single factor structure of the COV19-QoL, high internal consistency reliability, measurement invariance by gender, and all items demonstrated adequate discrimination and difficulty indices. In this sense, the items allow adequate discrimination between low, medium and high levels of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on quality of life. In addition, a greater perceived impact of the pandemic on quality of life is necessary to answer the higher response options of the COV19-QoL. In conclusion, the COV19-QoL is a valid measurement scale of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the quality of life of Peruvian older adults.

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BACKGROUND: Fear is one of the basic emotions generated during periods of infectious diseases. Therefore, the aim of this study was to develop and validate a scale that assesses monkeypox fear, the Monkeypox Fear Scale (MFS). METHODS: A total of 451 Peruvians participated (61% women and 39% men), with a mean age of 28.31 years (SD = 9.72). based on procedures from classical test theory (CTT) and item response theory (IRT). Classical Test Theory (CTT) and Item Response Theory (IRT) procedures were used. RESULTS: The results showed that MFS has a two-factor structure related to emotional and physiological fear factors (χ2 = 41.87; df = 12; p < .001; CFI = .99; TLI = .99; RMSEA = .074 [IC90% .051-.100]). In addition, the physiological and emotional factors showed good reliability. Measurement invariance analysis showed that the factor structure of the MFS is strictly invariant between male and female groups. Finally, the discrimination and difficulty parameters of the items show adequacy. In addition, the scale seems to be more accurate in measuring high levels of fear of monkeypox. CONCLUSION: The MFS has adequate psychometric evidence to assess fear of monkeypox in the Peruvian population. These findings may guide future studies related to the consequences of monkeypox on mental health.

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The present study examined how conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 vaccines specifically relate to symptoms of fear of COVID-19 in a sample of four South American countries. A total of 1785 people from Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru participated, responding to a sociodemographic survey, the Fear of COVID-19 scale (FCV-19 S) and the Vaccine Conspiracy Beliefs Scale-COVID-19 (VCBS-COVID-19). Network analysis identified the most important symptoms of fear and conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 vaccines (nodes) and the associations between them (edges). In addition, the robustness of the network of these indicators of centrality and the possible differences in the structure and connectivity of the networks between the four countries were evaluated. The results suggest that the nodes with the highest centrality were items 2 and 5 of the FCV-19 S and item 2 of the VCBS-COVID-19. Likewise, item 6 is the belief that most predicts conspiracy beliefs about vaccines against COVID-19; while item 6 was the symptom that most predicts fear of COVID-19. The findings strongly support cross-cultural similarities in the networks across the four countries rather than differences. Although it was expected that a higher presence of symptoms of fear of COVID-19 may lead people to compensate for their fear by believing in conspiratorial ideas about vaccines and, consequently, rejecting the COVID-19 vaccine, the results do not clearly show this relationship. This could lead other researchers to generate evidence to explain the differences between Latin American countries and countries in other contexts in terms of vaccination rates. This evidence could be useful to develop policies favoring vaccination against COVID-19 that are more contextualized to the Latin American region, characterized by social instability and economic recession during the pandemic.

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The present study translated and evaluated the psychometric evidence of the Pandemic Grief Risk Factors (PGRF) in a sample of 363 people from the general population of Peru who suffered the death of a loved one by COVID-19 (63-4% women and 36.6% men, where 78.5% were between 18 and 29 years old). The findings indicated that the PGRF is a unidimensional and reliable measure. The PGRF items can differentiate between individuals with different levels of risk factors and thus cover a wide range of the latent construct. Also, a greater sense of distress for each of the risk factors for pandemic grief is necessary to answer the higher response categories. Risk factors significantly and positively predict COVID-19-associated dysfunctional grief. The results indicated that the PGRF in Spanish is a measure with adequate psychometric properties to measure risk factors for pandemic grief.

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Introduction: Intervention programs in sports psychology aid to modify the thoughts and behaviors of athletes in order to improve their performance in sports settings. For high-performance athletes, these interventions are very relevant, given that they constantly face pressure towards obtaining sporting achievements. Methods: This systematic review aims to analyze the scientific articles between 2010 and 2020 that evaluated the effect of psychological interventions on high-performance athletes. In the search procedure, nine studies were selected, the most studied variables were psychological skills, psychological flexibility, and stress. Results: The 44% of the interventions were designed by the research authors themselves, while the remaining 56% were replicated programs, which already had scientific evidence. Discussion: Psychological interventions have a positive impact on sports performance. This review allows sports institutions and professionals to have more knowledge and resources at their disposal to implement these types of programs in their sports planning.