Psychometric Properties of the Norwegian Acceptance and Action Questionnaire in a Non-clinical Sample

Abstract

The Acceptance and Action Questionnaire second version (AAQ-II) is a widely used measure of experiential avoidance and has been translated into several languages. Previous examinations of the psychometric properties have shown a correlated measurement error (CME) between item 1 and 4, and in some studies also items 2 and 3. Allowing for CME in confirmatory factor analysis may introduce biases and move the results away from the true population model. The purpose of this study was (1) to examine the factor structure of the Norwegian AAQ-II (NAAQ), without allowing CME, and (2) to test the hypothesis that more experiential avoidance is related to the use of more maladaptive and less adaptive emotion regulation strategies. We recruited and assessed 233 (data set 1) and 395 (data set 2) participants with the NAAQ, and the second sample was also assessed with the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire. Our results show that five items best represented NAAQ. Further, our hypothesis about the relationship between experiential avoidance and emotion regulation strategies was supported. Experiential avoidance correlated negatively with reappraisal and positively with expression suppression. We conclude that the NAAQ is a valid measure of experiential avoidance in a non-clinical sample and that there is a juxtaposition between experiential avoidance and emotion regulation, and thus between acceptance and commitment therapy and emotion regulation theory.