Skip to main content

Advertisement

Log in

Psychometric properties and factorial analysis of invariance of the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) in cancer patients

  • Published:
Quality of Life Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to assess the psychometric properties of the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), evaluate the measurement invariance with respect to sex, age, and tumor location, as well as analyze associations between life satisfaction and socio-demographic and clinical variables among individuals with resected, non-advanced cancer.

Methods

A confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to explore the dimensionality of the scale and test invariance across gender, age, and tumor localization in a prospective, multicenter cohort of 713 patients who completed the following scales: SWLS, Health-related Quality of Life Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30), Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI-18).

Results

Confirmatory factor analysis results indicated that the SWLS is an essentially unidimensional instrument, providing accurate scores: both McDonald’s omega and Cronbach’s alpha estimates were 0.91. Strong measurement invariance was found to hold across gender, age, and tumor localization. Low satisfaction with life was associated with psychological symptoms (anxiety, depression, and somatization), and decreased quality of life (malfunction, symptoms, poor global QoL).

Conclusion

The SWLS is a reliable, valid satisfaction with life measurement among people with cancer and should be recommended as an indicator of psychological adjustment in oncological patients.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Ferlay, J., Steliarova-Foucher, E., Lortet-Tieulent, J., Rosso, S., Coebergh, J. W. W., Comber, H., … Bray, F. (2013). Cancer incidence and mortality patterns in Europe: Estimates for 40 countries in 2012. European Journal of Cancer, 49(6), 1374–1403. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejca.2012.12.027.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Kvale, E. A., Huang, C.-H. S., Meneses, K. M., Demark-Wahnefried, W., Bae, S., Azuero, C. B., … Ritchie, C. S. (2016). Patient-centered support in the survivorship care transition: Outcomes from the patient-owned survivorship care plan intervention. Cancer, 122(20), 3232–3242. https://doi.org/10.1002/cncr.30136.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Ramchand, S. K., Lim, E., & Grossmann, M. (2016). Adjuvant endocrine therapy in women with oestrogen-receptor-positive breast cancer: how should the skeletal and vascular side effects be assessed and managed? Clinical Endocrinology, 85(5), 689–693. https://doi.org/10.1111/cen.13172.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Pendergrass, J. C., Targum, S. D., & Harrison, J. E. (2018). Cognitive impairment associated with cancer: A brief review. Innovations in clinical neuroscience, 15(1–2), 36–44.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  5. Diener, E., Emmons, R. A., Larsen, R. J., & Griffin, S. (1985). The Satisfaction With Life Scale. Journal of Personality Assessment, 49(1), 71–75. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327752jpa4901_13.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Pavot, W., & Diener, E. (2008). The Satisfaction With Life Scale and the emerging construct of life satisfaction. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 3(2), 137–152. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760701756946.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Steptoe, A., Deaton, A., & Stone, A. A. (2015). Subjective wellbeing, health, and ageing. The Lancet, 385(9968), 640–648. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(13)61489-0.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Hinz, A., Conrad, I., Schroeter, M. L., Glaesmer, H., Brähler, E., Zenger, M., … Herzberg, P. Y. (2018). Psychometric properties of the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), derived from a large German community sample. Quality of Life Research, 0(0), 0. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-018-1844-1.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Esnaola, I., Benito, M., Antonio-Agirre, I., Freeman, J., & Sarasa, M. (2017). Measurement invariance of the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS) by country, gender and age. Psicothema, 29(4), 596–601. https://doi.org/10.7334/psicothema2016.394.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Vázquez, C., Duque, A., & Hervás, G. (2013). Satisfaction with Life Scale in a representative sample of Spanish adults: Validation and normative data. The Spanish Journal of Psychology, 16, E82. https://doi.org/10.1017/sjp.2013.82.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Dunn, J., Ng, S. K., Breitbart, W., Aitken, J., Youl, P., Baade, P. D., & Chambers, S. K. (2013). Health-related quality of life and life satisfaction in colorectal cancer survivors: Trajectories of adjustment. Health Qual Life Outcomes, 11, 46.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  12. Chambers, S. K., Ng, S. K., Baade, P., Aitken, J. F., Hyde, M. K., Wittert, G., … Dunn, J. (2017). Trajectories of quality of life, life satisfaction, and psychological adjustment after prostate cancer. Psycho-Oncology, 26(10), 1576–1585. https://doi.org/10.1002/pon.4342.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  13. Olsson, M., Nilsson, M., Fugl-Meyer, K., Petersson, L.-M., Wennman-Larsen, A., Kjeldgård, L., & Alexanderson, K. (2017). Life satisfaction of women of working age shortly after breast cancer surgery. Quality of Life Research, 26(3), 673–684. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-016-1479-z.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  14. Ashraf, A. A., Colakoglu, S., Nguyen, J. T., Anastasopulos, A. J., Ibrahim, A. M. S., Yueh, J. H., … Lee, B. T. (2013). Patient involvement in the decision-making process improves satisfaction and quality of life in postmastectomy breast reconstruction. Journal of Surgical Research, 184(1), 665–670. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jss.2013.04.057.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Vázquez, C., Rahona, J. J., Gómez, D., Caballero, F. F., & Hervás, G. (2015). A national representative study of the relative impact of physical and psychological problems on life satisfaction. Journal of Happiness Studies, 16(1), 135–148.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Cipora, E., Konieczny, M., Karwat, I., Roczniak, W., & Babuśka-Roczniak, M. (2018). Satisfaction with life among women with breast cancer: Selected demographic and social factors. Annals of Agricultural and Environmental Medicine. https://doi.org/10.26444/aaem/82622.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. He, Z.-Y., Tong, Q., Wu, S.-G., Li, F.-Y., Lin, H.-X., & Guan, X.-X. (2012). A comparison of quality of life and satisfaction of women with early-stage breast cancer treated with breast conserving therapy vs. mastectomy in southern China. Supportive Care in Cancer, 20(10), 2441–2449.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Han, J., Grothuesmann, D., Neises, M., Hille, U., & Hillemanns, P. (2010). Quality of life and satisfaction after breast cancer operation. Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics, 282(1), 75–82. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00404-009-1302-y.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Atienza, F. L., Balaguer, I., Corte-Real, N., & Fonseca, A. M. (2016). Factorial invariance of the Satisfaction with Life Scale in adolescents from Spain and Portugal. Psicothema, 28(3), 353–358. https://doi.org/10.7334/psicothema2016.1.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Jovanović, V. (2016). The validity of the Satisfaction with Life Scale in adolescents and a comparison with single-item life satisfaction measures: a preliminary study. Quality of Life Research, 25(12), 3173–3180. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-016-1331-5.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Clench-Aas, J., Nes, R. B., Dalgard, O. S., & Aarø, L. E. (2011). Dimensionality and measurement invariance in the Satisfaction with Life Scale in Norway. Quality of Life Research, 20(8), 1307–1317. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-011-9859-x.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  22. Pavot, W., & Diener, E. (2009). Review of the satisfaction with life scale. In N. Diener (Ed.), Assessing well-being (pp. 101–117). New York: Springer.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  23. Emerson, S. D., Guhn, M., & Gadermann, A. M. (2017). Measurement invariance of the Satisfaction with Life Scale: reviewing three decades of research. Quality of Life Research, 26(9), 2251–2264. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-017-1552-2.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  24. Bagherzadeh, M., Loewe, N., Mouawad, R. G., Batista-Foguet, J. M., Araya-Castillo, L., & Thieme, C. (2018). Spanish version of the Satisfaction with Life Scale: Validation and factorial invariance analysis in Chile. Spanish Journal of Psychology, 21, 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1017/sjp.2018.2.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. Whisman, M. A., Judd, C. M., Whisman, M. A., & Judd, C. M. (2015). A Cross-National analysis of measurement invariance of the Satisfaction With Life Scale. Psychological Assessment, 28(2), 239–244.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  26. Derogatis, L. R. (2001). BSI 18, Brief symptom inventory 18: Administration, scoring and procedures manual. Minneapolis: NCS Pearson, Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  27. Aaronson, N. K., Ahmedzai, S., Bergman, B., Bullinger, M., Cull, A., Duez, N. J., … de Haes, J. C. (1993). The European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer QLQ-C30: A quality-of-life instrument for use in international clinical trials in oncology. Journal of the National Cancer Institute, 85(5), 365–376.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  28. Muthén, L. K., & Muthén, B. O. (2004). Mplus user’s guide: Statistical analysis with latent variables: User’ss guide. Los Angeles: Muthén & Muthén.

    Google Scholar 

  29. Ferrando, P. J., & Lorenzo-Seva, U. (2017). Assessing the quality and appropriateness of factor solutions and factor score estimates in exploratory item factor analysis. Educational and Psychological Measurement. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013164417719308.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Lorenzo-Seva, U., & Ferrando, P. J. (2013). FACTOR 9.2: A comprehensive program for fitting exploratory and semiconfirmatory factor analysis and IRT Models. Applied Psychological Measurement, 37(6), 497–498. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146621613487794.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  31. Schermelleh-Engel, K., Moosbrugger, H., & Müller, H. (2003). Evaluating the fit of structural equation models: Tests of significance and descriptive goodness-of-fit measures. Methods of Psychological Research Online, (2), 23–74.

  32. Hair, J. F., Black, W. C., & Babin, B. J. (2010). RE Anderson multivariate data analysis: A global perspective. New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall.

    Google Scholar 

  33. Schermelleh-Engel, K., Kerwer, M., & Klein, A. G. (2014). Evaluation of model fit in nonlinear multilevel structural equation modeling. Frontiers in Psychology, 5, 181. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00181.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  34. Van de Schoot, R., Lugtig, P., & Hox, J. (2012). A checklist for testing measurement invariance. European Journal of Developmental Psychology, 9(4), 486–492.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  35. Millsap, R. E., & Meredith, W. (2007). Factorial invariance: Historical perspectives and new problems. In R. Cudeck & R. C. MacCallum (Eds.), Factor analysis at 100 (pp. 131–152). Mahwah: LEA.

    Google Scholar 

  36. Little, T. D. (1997). Mean and covariance structures (MACS) analyses of cross-cultural data: Practical and theoretical issues. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 32(1), 53–76. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327906mbr3201_3.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  37. Ferrando, P. J. (1996). Calibration of invariant item parameters in a continuous item response model using the extended Lisrel measurement submodel. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 31(4), 419–439. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327906mbr3104_2.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  38. Ferrando, P. J., & Lorenzo-Seva, U. (2013). Unrestricted item factor analysis and some relations with item response theory. Retrieved from http://psico.fcep.urv.es/utilitats/factor.

  39. Asparouhov, T. (2006). General multi-level modeling with sampling weights. Communications in Statistics - Theory and Methods, 35(3), 439–460. https://doi.org/10.1080/03610920500476598.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  40. Courneya, K. S., Friedenreich, C. M., Quinney, H. A., Fields, A. L. A., Jones, L. W., & Fairey, A. S. (2003). A randomized trial of exercise and quality of life in colorectal cancer survivors. European Journal of Cancer Care, 12(4), 347–357. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2354.2003.00437.x.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  41. Letourneau, J. M., Ebbel, E. E., Katz, P. P., Katz, A., Ai, W. Z., Chien, A. J., … Rosen, M. P. (2012). Pretreatment fertility counseling and fertility preservation improve quality of life in reproductive age women with cancer. Cancer, 118(6), 1710–1717. https://doi.org/10.1002/cncr.26459.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  42. Campbell, A., Mutrie, N., White, F., McGuire, F., & Kearney, N. (2005). A pilot study of a supervised group exercise programme as a rehabilitation treatment for women with breast cancer receiving adjuvant treatment. European Journal of Oncology Nursing, 9(1), 56–63. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejon.2004.03.007.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  43. Bai, X., Wu, C., Zheng, R., & Ren, X. (2011). The psychometric evaluation of the Satisfaction with Life Scale using a nationally representative sample of China. Journal of Happiness Studies, 12(2), 183–197. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-010-9186-x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  44. Gouveia, V. V., Milfont, T. L., da Fonseca, P. N., & de Coelho, J. A. P. M (2009). Life satisfaction in Brazil: Testing the psychometric properties of the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS) in five Brazilian samples. Social Indicators Research, 90(2), 267–277. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-008-9257-0.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  45. Hultell, D., & Petter Gustavsson, J. (2008). A psychometric evaluation of the Satisfaction with Life Scale in a Swedish nationwide sample of university students. Personality and Individual Differences, 44(5), 1070–1079. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2007.10.030.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  46. Pons, D., Atienza, F. L., Balaguer, I., & García-Merita, M. L. (2000). Satisfaction with Life Scale: Analysis of factorial invariance for adolescents and elderly persons. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 91(1), 62–68. https://doi.org/10.2466/pms.2000.91.1.62.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  47. Merluzzi, T., & Martinez Sanchez, M. (2018). Husbands’ perceptions of their wives’ breast cancer coping efficacy: Testing congruence models of adjustment. Cancer Management and Research, 10, 297–304.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  48. Kayser, K., Acquati, C., Reese, J. B., Mark, K., Wittmann, D., & Karam, E. (2018). A systematic review of dyadic studies examining relationship quality in couples facing colorectal cancer together. Psycho-Oncology, 27(1), 13–21. https://doi.org/10.1002/pon.4339.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the investigators of the Neocoping study (coping, shared decision-making, and quality of life in patients with early-stage cancer treated with adjuvant chemotherapy) and the Supportive Care Working Group of the Spanish Society of Medical Oncology (SEOM).

Funding

This work was funded by the Spanish Society of Medical Oncology (SEOM) in 2015. The sponsor of this research has not participated in data collection, analysis, or interpretation, in writing the report, or in the decision to submit the article for publication.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Caterina Calderon.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors have declared no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Lorenzo-Seva, U., Calderon, C., Ferrando, P.J. et al. Psychometric properties and factorial analysis of invariance of the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) in cancer patients. Qual Life Res 28, 1255–1264 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-019-02106-y

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-019-02106-y

Keywords

Navigation