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Biomedical subjects

A M Abdel-Khalek

Publications and source records attributed to A M Abdel-Khalek.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2005

National character does not reflect mean personality trait levels in 49 cultures.

Most people hold beliefs about personality characteristics typical of members of their own and others' cultures. These perceptions of national character may be generalizations from personal experience, stereotypes with a "kernel of truth," or inaccurate stereotypes. We obtained national character ratings of 3989 people from 49 cultures and compared them with the average personality scores of culture members assessed by observer ratings and self-reports. National character ratings were reliable but did not converge with assessed traits. Perceptions of national character thus appear to be unfounded stereotypes that may serve the function of maintaining a national identity.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2001

Epidemiologic study of sleep disorders in Kuwaiti adolescents.

A sample of 2,574 volunteer Kuwaiti boys (n = 1,309) and girls (n = 1,265) in secondary schools were recruited. Their ages ranged from 14 to 18 years. 13 items were used to assess prevalence of insomnia, hypersomnia, nightmares, sleepwalking, sleep terror, and narcolepsy. Participants were requested to respond according to the past month on a 5-point scale. The summation of responses in the last two options, i.e., "Much" and "Very much" was considered as the point prevalence rates. Girls had significantly higher mean ratings than boys on the following items: difficulty initiating sleep, fitful and disturbed sleep, waking up several times, nightmares, and sleep terror, while boys had significantly higher mean ratings on sleepwalking and "watching TV causes naps or sleep." The point prevalence on all the items for boys ranged from 4.6% to 35.2%, and that for girls ranged between 1.0% and 37.5%. One should keep in mind that the present sample was not a clinical one.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

Obsession-compulsion, locus of control, depression, and hopelessness: a construct validity of the Arabic Obsessive-Compulsive Scale in American and Kuwaiti students.

In samples of 144 American and 209 Kuwaiti college students, the correlations among scores on the Arabic Obsessive-Compulsive Scale and external locus of control (.26, .25), depression (.31, .55) and hopelessness (.27, .43) were significant and positive in both samples, denoting the construct validity of the Obsessive-Compulsive Scale. Thus, it can be recommended for use in both countries.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

The Kuwait University Anxiety Scale: psychometric properties.

This study was undertaken to construct the Kuwait University Anxiety Scale in two comparable Arabic and English versions. The intent was to provide a research tool as well as a measure of predisposition to develop anxiety in general among adults and adolescents. The scale is comprised by 20 brief statements answered on a 4-point intensity scale, anchored by 1: Rarely and 4: Always. Factor analysis yielded three high-loaded factors of Cognitive/Affective, Behavioral/Subjective, and Somatic Anxiety, with moderate interfactor correlations. Item-remainder correlations ranged from .27 to .74. Reliabilities ranged from .88 to .92 (alpha) and between .70 and .93 (test-retest), denoting good internal consistency and stability. Criterion-related validity of the scale ranged between .70 and .88 (5 criteria), while the loadings of the scale on a general factor of anxiety were .93 and .95 in two factor analyses, demonstrating the scale's criterion-related and factorial validity. Discriminant validity of the scale was demonstrated. The scale correlated .65 with scores on the Beck Depression scale. Male adolescents attained a higher mean score than male undergraduates. Females have significantly higher mean scores than their male counterparts. Kuwaiti norms (N = 4,660) were reported. An English version of the scale is available.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1999

A cross-cultural evaluation of depression in children in Egypt, Kuwait, and the United States.

The English version of the Arabic Children's Depression Inventory, constructed by Abdel-Khalek, was applied to a sample of 535 U.S. students (11 to 18 years old). Cronbach coefficients alpha were .88, .90, and .89 for boys, girls, and all subjects, respectively. Seven factors were extracted by principal axis factor analysis (Negative mood and self-depreciation, Fatigue, Lack of loneliness, Sleep problems, Weak concentration, Pessimism, and Feeling happy), denoting clear factorial structure; however, the scale was intended to be unidimensional. Sex and racial differences for this American sample were not statistically significant but the correlation of depression scores with age was .22. The scale appears useful in studying depression in American school children and adolescents. Also, cross-cultural differences in childhood depression between samples from Egypt and Kuwait of previous studies and the present American sample were examined. Based on the effect size, female Kuwaiti had a lower mean depression score than either the Egyptian or American groups. The scale can be used in cross-cultural research.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1999

Criterion-related validity of the Arabic Obsessive-Compulsive Scale in Kuwaiti and American students.

The Arabic Obsessive-Compulsive Scale and the Maudsley Obsessional-Compulsive Inventory were administered to 159 Kuwaiti (Arabic version) and 72 American college students (English version). Pearson correlations for total score on the two scales were .68 and .64 for Kuwaiti and Americans, respectively, denoting a good convergent validity of the new Arabic Obsessive-Compulsive Scale against scores on the Maudsley Obsessional-Compulsive Inventory in the two different national groups.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Single- versus multi-item scales in measuring death anxiety.

The author investigated the reliability and concurrent validity of a Likert-type single-item test asking for a self-rating of death anxiety in two Arabic countries: Egypt and Kuwait. A total of 1,439 participants were divided into 9 male and female subsamples and were tested by a single item of death anxiety, along with three psychometric multi-item instruments (i.e., Templer's Death Anxiety Scale, Thorson and Powell's Revised Death Anxiety Scale, and the Arabic Scale of Death Anxiety). The single- and multi-item scales had high reliabilities. All of the thirteen correlations between the single-item and the multi-item scales of death anxiety among men and women were statistically significant (p less than .001) and positive. They ranged from .30 to .66, with a median of .51. It was concluded that single-item assessment can be reliable across time (test-retest = .82) and that it correlates moderately with multi-item instruments.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Internal consistency of an Arabic Adaptation of the Beck Depression Inventory in four Arab countries.

An Arabic version of the revised edition of the Beck Depression Inventory in its complete form was developed. Back translation indicated the translation into modern standard Arabic was adequate. The cross-language equivalence of scores on the Arabic and English forms was .96, denoting high equivalence in meaning. Coefficients alpha were computed for samples of male and female undergraduates recruited from Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Lebanon (ns = 100, 80, 100, 100, respectively). Values of alpha were .77, .82, .89, and .67, respectively. By and large, the inventory seems viable in the Arabic context so its use in cross-cultural research may be explored.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Criterion-related validity of the Arabic Children's Depression Inventory.

The Arabic Children's Depression Inventory and the Beck Depression Inventory were administered to 109 Kuwaiti school students whose ages ranged from 14 to 18 years. Pearson correlations for total score on the two scales were .57, .83, and .75 for boys, girls, and the combined group, respectively, denoting the convergent validity of the new Arabic inventory against the Beck Depression Inventory as criterion.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Two scales of death anxiety: their reliability and correlation among Kuwaiti samples.

Arabic versions of the Templer Death Anxiety Scale and the Thorson and Powell Revised Death Anxiety Scale were administered to 117 male and 157 female Kuwaiti undergraduates. Cronbach coefficients alpha for the two scales were, respectively, .79 and .77. Pearson correlations for scores on the two scales were .54, .67, and .64 for men, women and the combined group, respectively, so reliability and concurrent validity of the scales were adequate for the Kuwaiti sample.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

A survey of fears associated with Iraqi aggression among Kuwaiti children and adolescents: a factorial study 5.7 years after the Gulf War.

A survey of the fear-eliciting stimuli associated with Iraqi aggression among Kuwaiti children and adolescents (1020 boys and 1063 girls, 13 to 17 years old) was carried out with a fear schedule of 30 items administered 5.7 years after the Iraqi aggression. The scale has high reliability and concurrent validity. Three significant factors were disclosed and named Iraqi Aggressor, War Machinery, and War Correlates and Effects. Girls attained significantly higher mean scores than boys on all 30 items and total score. It was concluded that the Iraqi aggression's adverse effects has persisted in spite of the passing of 5.7 years since this traumatic experience. The present scale might be used to assess fears of war in research on posttraumatic stress syndrome.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

Factorial structure of the Arabic Children's Depression Inventory among Kuwaiti subjects.

The Arabic Children's Depression Inventory developed by Abdel-Khalek was administered to 1981 Kuwaiti middle-school students (995 boys and 986 girls). Their ages ranged from 10 to 16 years. Five orthogonal (varimax) factors were extracted. They were labeled generic depression, pessimism, feeling happy, weak concentration, and lack of loneliness. It was concluded that these interpretable factors pertained to the phenomenon of childhood depression, so the inventory can be recommended for use with Kuwaiti children and adolescents.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Normative results on the Arabic Fear Survey Schedule III.

An Arabic version of the Wolpe-Lang Fear Survey Schedule III (A-FSS III) was administered to 520 Egyptian undergraduates (282 males and 238 females). Means, standard deviations and "t" values were computed for the 108 individual items, the five subscores, 0, 1, 2, 3 and 4, as well as the total score. Gender differences were salient and very high. Females exceeded males in almost all comparisons. Compared with Klieger's (Journal of Behavior Therapy & Experimental Psychiatry 1992, 23, 81-88) results, the vast majority of the Egyptian 108 item means are higher than those of their U.S. counterparts. Males and females rated the same seven items as among the 10 most fearful stimuli they could encounter. Eight out of the top 10 means dealt with fears in social or interpersonal contexts.

Adult↗