Validation of the Revised Ego-Resiliency Scale in a High-Vulnerable Colombian Population

The ER89 (Block & Kremen, 1996) is a self-report scale measuring ego-resiliency in community contexts. The present study examined the psychometric properties of a brief version of the ER 89 (ER89-R: Alessandri, Vecchio, Steca, Caprara, & Caprara, 2007) in a Colombian high-vulnerable population. Participants were 947 young and adults (427 males, 520 females), ranging in age from 16 to 66 years (M = 32.4, SD = 11.6), living in fourteen town halls and beneficiaries of four programs for individuals in situations of extreme poverty or victims of violence. CFA supported the presence of the ER second-order factor and two first-order factors, named Optimal regulation (OR) and Openness to life experiences (OL). In addition, results showed full configural invariance of the scales across three age groups (16-25 years, 26-40 years and over 40 years) and partial strict invariance by gender. The construct validity of the ER89-R was further examined by zero-order correlations and multiple regression analyses: significant and positive association of ER, OR and OL with some relevant indicators of adjustment (self-esteem, optimism, and coping strategies) were found. Important implications for intervention programs aimed at people in disadvantaged contexts are discussed.