Hopelessness Scales. Primary data from the standardization sample.

The hopelessness scale (H scale) is a German scale developed by Beck, Weissman, Lester, and Trexler (1974) which measures optimism vs. pessimism with regard to one’s life and one’s own person. The theoretical background of the H-scale is found in the cognitive theory of depression by Beck (1972) and Stotland’s (1969) instrumentally theoretical approach to hopelessness. Furthermore, the concept has references to the theory of learned helplessness and the formation of psychoanalytic theories (Krampen, 1979, 1982). Hopelessness can be understood as a complex expectancy-value-theoretical construct that, in addition to reduced competence and contingency expectations, includes changes in valuation of action and/or life goals (Krampen, 1994, p. 5). In this sense, Krampen organizes (1987) this construct at the level of relatively high generalized subjective valences and expectations within an action-theoretical partial model of personality (HPP, handlungstheoretisches Partialmodell der Persönlichkeit). Therefore, in addition to the questionnaire concerning perceived competence and locus of control (FKK, Fragebogen zu Kompetenz- und Kontrollüberzeugungen, Staples, 1991; see the description in PSYNDEX tests Doc.-No. 2361), there is now another action-theoretical personality diagnostic tool with which Krampen (1994) tried to replace purely descriptive personality psychology in the factor analytic tradition with a more theory-based psychodiagnostic tool. The method was originally developed in the context of research studying depression and suicidality by measuring the subjective well-being of healthy as well as mentally ill and physically ill and psychosomatically ill subjects (Krampen, 1979). The items particularly measure the quality of each subject’s future expectations in the sense of reduced personal goals. They relate to negative expectations about themselves, about their personal living environment, and their future lives. The measure is available in two parallel formats of the original standard version as well as a revised version: (1) Standard version H-S-scale with 20 alternative items to be answered (true/false), which is available in two parallel half-formats, each with 10 items (H-SA-scale, H-SB-scale), (2) Revised version of H-R-scale with 20 items to be answered in six steps (very wrong to very right), which is also available in two parallel forms with 10 items each (H-RA-scale, H-RB-scale). This dataset includes data from a representative sample of 2,051 German adults from the year 1990 which were used for standardization of the H-scale (Krampen, 1994). Along with the 20 items of the scale, a variety of socioeconomic variables were recorded.