Examining the Within- and Between-Person Structure of a Short Form of the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule: A Multilevel and Dynamic Approach

Increasing research uses intensive longitudinal designs to examine antecedents and consequences associated with dynamic affective processes. These studies often rely on the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) to measure affect. Studies assessing the structure of the PANAS are largely cross-sectional in nature and cannot always disentangle within-person variability from between-person differences in affect. A paucity of studies examines structural similarities and differences in affect at the between- and within-person levels, and few have done so with short-form versions of the PANAS. This study investigates the multilevel factor structure of the 10-item PANAS-SF in a sample of young adults (n = 272) measured daily consecutively over one month. Additionally, dynamic relations between positive and negative affect, depressive symptoms, stress, and physical symptoms were examined. Results support a 3-factors within and 2-factors between multilevel structural model. Distinct dynamic relations were observed among positive, negative affect, stress, and physical symptoms at the within-level. Positive and negative affect were correlated with depressive symptoms, stress, and physical symptoms at the between-level. Findings indicate the need to disentangle structural components of positive and negative affect when conducting intensive longitudinal studies to examine correlates linked to dynamic affective processes.