Validation of the MESSi among adult workers and young students: General health and personality correlates

ABSTRACT

The aim of this study was to provide validity for the Spanish version of the Morningness–Eveningness-Stability Scale – improved (MESSi), a novel evolved assessment of circadian typology which considers the subjective phase and amplitude by morning affect (MA), eveningness (EV) and distinctness (DI; subjective amplitude) sub-scales. Convergence validity of the MESSi with the reduced Morningness–Eveningness Questionnaire (rMEQ) and relationships with the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) and sensitivity to reward and punishment (SR and SP) were analyzed. Two different Spanish samples, young undergraduate students (n = 891, 18–30 years) and adult workers (n = 577, 31–65 years) participated in this study. Exploratory structural equation modeling (ESEM) of MESSi displayed acceptable fit of a three-factors measurement model. Percentiles of the MA, EV and DI sub-scales were obtained for students and adults. The MESSi showed good convergence validity with the rMEQ scores, with a higher correlation coefficient between MA, EV and lower with DI sub-scales. In both, young students and adult workers, MA was negatively related with the GHQ-12 and SP, but the percentage of explained variance (6% and 3%) was lower than the positive correlations between DI, the GHQ-12 and SP (20% and 13%). Morning types presented higher MA and lower EV scores than the other two typologies in both students and adult workers, whereas only differences in DI were found among students (lowest in evening type). Candidates to psychological symptoms and mental disorders (“true cases”), with the clinical cut-off criteria of the GHQ-12, showed lower MA and higher DI in students, whereas only DI was higher for “true cases” among adults. These results supported that subjective amplitude is a factor related to, but also differentiated of, morningness–eveningness (preferred time for a certain activity). The measure of amplitude might be more important than circadian phase in health consequences.

KEYWORDS:

• Circadian preference
• distinctness
• general health
• morningness–eveningness
• sensitivity to punishment
• sensitivity to reward
• subjective amplitude

Acknowledgments

Authors thank Zaida Parra Robledo for her assistance with the ESEM analysis. This work was supported by grants from the Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness PSI2016-76552 (Juan F. Díaz-Morales) and PSI2015-65026 (MINECO/FEDER/UE; Ana Adan). The funding sources have no involvement in study planning, conduction or evaluation.

Declaration of interest

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of this paper.