Vivo Questionnaire: A Measure of Human Worldviews and Identity in Trauma, Crisis, and Loss—Validation and Preliminary Findings

Abstract

Various proposals have been made in order to measure worldviews and identity in extreme trauma or loss experiences. The use of these scales has provided mixed results. The Vital Impact Assessment Scale (VIVO) was designed to fill some of the gaps of the existing tools: (a) to be administered to the general population, as well as to survivors of extreme experiences; (b) to include an extensive range of human responses to extreme situations; (c) to be administered to large population samples from different cultural backgrounds; (d) to avoid anchoring to a specific personal experience; and (e) to work with extensive and complex response profiles. Validation data and preliminary results are presented for the Spanish version, and an English formulation is proposed. The final version of the VIVO Questionnaire, composed of 116 items, offers an organized profile divided into 10 conceptual blocks (worldviews, attitude towards the world, view of human beings, coping, impact of past situations, emotions, telling the experience, consequences, social support, and identity) and 35 subscales.

Notes

Note. Values are means, standard deviations, and internal consistency for each of the factors for the general population (1–21) and survivors (22–35). VE = variability explained by the factor structure of each conceptual block; α = safety coefficient (Cronbach α of each factor).

^a Items retained based on theoretical criteria.

*p < .05; **p < .01.

Note. Items 1–72 are suitable for all respondents, Items 73–116 only for survivors. SPSS-X syntax for automated correction of the questionnaire is available from the authors on request.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Pau Pérez-Sales

Pau Pérez-Sales is a psychiatrist at Hospital La Paz, Madrid. He works in the fields of mental health, human rights, social movements, and political violence. He has authored books and papers on psychosocial and community work and psychotherapy with survivors in contexts of political violence.

Francisco Jose Eiroa-Orosa

Francisco Jose Eiroa-Orosa works as a psychologist in the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona and is a member of the Community Action Group. His interests cover psychotraumatology, addictions, constructivist epistemology in psychotherapy, and the relation of social change and psychosocial well-being.

Pablo Olivos

Pablo Olivos works as a social psychologist at the University of Castilla-La Mancha and is a member of the Community Action Group. His research interests cover applied social psychology and social identity subjects such as environmental identity and restorative effects of contact with nature.

Elena Barbero-Val

Elena Barbero-Val is a psychologist and member of the Community Action Group. She is currently preparing for the entry exam to the postgraduate training program in clinical psychology.

Alberto Fernández-Liria

Alberto Fernández-Liria is a psychiatrist, chief of the University Hospital Principe de Asturias Mental Health Network, and associate professor at the Alcala University in Madrid, Spain. He is a member of the Community Action Group.

María Vergara

María Vergara works as a child psychologist at the EXIL Center, a program for medical, psychological, and social support for victims of violence and human rights violations.