The weighting procedure for positive items is similar to that for negative items.
Participants rated items based on a 4-point Likert scale ranging from 0 (always) to 3 (never) for positive items and ranging from 3 (always) to 0 (never) for negative items.
Some scenarios proposed larger size of variation for positive items than for negative items as they are less difficult to answer than the negative ones, especially when considering the highest of the four response categories [ 20].
The total score and subscales of the QoR-40 are measured using a five-point Likert scale (for positive items: 1 = none of the time, 5 = all of the time; for negative items, the scoring was reversed) and individual scores are then added together, with the minimum score being 40 points and the maximum score being 200 points.
The items are answered on a seven-point Likert scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree) for positive items and 1 (strongly agree) to 7 (strongly disagree) for the 10 negative items; scores thus range from 20 to 140, with higher scores signifying greater empathy [ 3].
Consistent with hypothesis 3c, for vividness of imagery generated for the positive items of the PIT, responders scored significantly higher, M = 29.86, SD = 9.48, than non-responders, M = 17.67, SD = 6.71; t(11) = 2.63, p =.02, d = 1.47.
For the positive items, α = 0.92 (excellent) and for the negative items, α = 0.87 (good).
For the positive items, the point was 0,0,1,2,3,4, while for the negative item, the point was 4,3,2,1,0,0 for "always", "usually", "often", "sometimes", "rarely" and "never", respectively.
Participants with complete data on all positive or negative items of the Social Experiences Checklist (n = 4,714; 94.3% for the positive items, and n = 4,741; 94.9% for the negative items), and the socio-demographic variables (n = 4,860; 97.2%) were included in the analysis, resulting in an analytical sample of 4,724 participants.
Mean vividness rating scores and pleasantness rating scores were then calculated for HIT positive items and HIT negative items.
The scores for the positive items in the 14-item scale were reversed, and a total score was obtained by summing all items with scores ranging from 0 to 56, so that higher scores indicate higher levels of perceived stress.
