Psychometric evaluation and validation of the electronic form of the applied mindfulness process scale among university students

Introduction: Mindfulness is a key variable in positive psychology that contributes to students’ health and quality of life. This research aimed to examine the factor structure and validate the electronic form of this scale among university students.  Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study over the academic year 2022-2023, 831 university students in Bandar Abbas City, Iran, were selected by stratified sampling. They fulfilled the Applied Mindfulness Process Scale (AMPS) and the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ). Content, concurrent, construct validity, and internal and split-half reliability of the scale were assessed using statistical methods with SPSS and LISREL software.  Results: The AMPS demonstrated robust content validity, with Content Validity Ratio (CVR) values ranging from 0.80 to 0.90 and Content Validity Index (CVI) values between 0.85 and 0.95 for its 15 items. There was also a significant positive correlation between the scale and the FFMQ (r=0.79 and P 0.001), indicating good concurrent validity. We indicated three factors with eigenvalues over one, explaining 75.347 percent of the total variance through exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. These three factors were focus, positive emotion regulation, and negative emotion regulation. The internal and split-half reliability of the scale was also high (Cronbach’s alpha= 0.939, Guttman split-half coefficient= 0.840). Conclusion: Applied mindfulness process scale is a valid tool for assessing mindfulness and can be applied to mindfulness research and interventions.