Abstract
Rumination predicts wellbeing and is a core construct in the cognitive vulnerabilities to depression literature. Traditional measures of depressive rumination (e.g., Ruminative Responses Subscale, RRS; Treynor et al., 2003) rarely include items capturing thoughts about problems or events, even though these thoughts are in measures of related constructs (e.g., co-rumination, post-event processing). We created the Rumination on Problems Questionnaire (RPQ) for use on its own and with the RRS to capture rumination about problems and to align with measures of other ruminative and repetitive thinking processes. Our cross-sectional study of 927 undergraduates revealed the RPQ had a single factor, good internal reliability, convergent and discriminant validity, and significantly predicted depression, anxiety, and stress controlling for the RRS and co-rumination. Researchers and clinicians interested in rumination or cognitive vulnerabilities may wish to include the RPQ in their assessments. Measuring and addressing problem-focused rumination may be an important transdiagnostic treatment and prevention goal.
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The authors have no relevant financial or non-financial interests to disclose. Funding for this project was provided by internal faculty research grants from Swarthmore College and Quinnipiac University. Study approval was obtained from the Institutional Review Boards of Swarthmore College and Quinnipiac University. Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants in the study. All authors contributed to the writing of the manuscript. Additional author contributions to this manuscript are as follows: (1) Vélez: Conceptualization, data curation, formal analysis, funding acquisition, investigation, methodology, project administration, and supervision. (2) Hoang: Data curation, formal analysis, investigation, and project administration. (3) Krause: Conceptualization. (4) Gillham: Conceptualization, data curation, funding acquisition, investigation, methodology, project administration. Materials, data, and syntax for this study are available by emailing the corresponding author.
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Vélez, C.E., Hoang, K.N., Krause, E.D. et al. The Rumination on Problems Questionnaire: Broadening our Understanding of Rumination and its Links to Depression, Anxiety, and Stress in Young Adults. J Psychopathol Behav Assess 46, 191–204 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10862-023-10103-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10862-023-10103-2