Cross-cultural adaptation and validation of the highly sensitive person scale to the adult Spanish population (HSPS-S)

Abstract

Purpose: This article describes a cross-cultural adaptation of the Highly Sensitive Person Scale (HSPS) to the adult Spanish population, and psychometric analysis of its validation and reliability. Methods: Convenience sampling by participant accessibility was used. The original version was adapted culturally and linguistically using the back-translation method, and a pilot study was done with 88 participants. Data processing and analysis was performed with the SPSS v.25 and LISREL v.9.2 statistical packages. The psychometric properties were studied in a sample of 8358 participants using exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis, and examining factorial invariance and internal consistency. Results: The results confirmed a Spanish version with 27 items in five-dimensions: sensitivity to overstimulation (SOS), aesthetic sensitivity (AES), low sensory threshold (LST), fine psychophysiological discrimination (FPD) and harm avoidance (HA). Invariance across gender of this factor structure was demonstrated and reliability indices were good. Conclusion: These findings demonstrate that the HSPS is an appropriate tool for evaluating high sensitivity in the adult Spanish population.