Factorial analysis and invariance by sex and age of the Anger Rumination Scale ARS Spanish version

Abstract: Anger rumination is persevering thoughts about a personally significant event that occurred to the person or others that leads to anger and constitutes a risk factor for aggression. The objective was to determine the factor structure and test the invariance by sex and age of the Anger Rumination Scale (ARS). A non-probabilistic sample of 630 persons between 18 and 63 years old was formed (M = 31.07, SD = 11.27), grouped by sex (252 men, 378 women) and age (278 under 25 years old, 352 over 25 years old). The instruments used were the ARS and the reactive and proactive aggression RPQ questionnaire. We found the ARS to have a favorable fit in a four-factor model correlated with residual covariances. In turn, invariance between sexes and ages was found after imposing progressive restrictions in the confirmed model, and it showed significant correlations with reactive and proactive aggression as evidence of the validity of concurrent criteria. We concluded that the ARS shows adequate indicators of reliability and validity to be used in the Colombian context.