Psychometric Properties of Persian Version of Benign and Malicious Envy Scale (BeMaS) in Iranian Adults

Abstract

Background: Recently, some theories and research have introduced another type of envy, which includes both the positive (benign) and negative (malicious) aspects of envy. It seems that primarily the malicious dimension of envy is the subject of much existing research. Therefore, a scale that can measure another dimension of envy, such as malicious envy, can be an attractive measure for research in this field. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to validate and investigate the psychometric properties of the Iranian version of the Benign and Malicious Envy Scale (BeMaS). Methods: The current research is of a descriptive-correlation type. A total of 429 people (138 males and 291 females) participated in the study. The participants answered the questions of the Sociodemographic Questionnaire, BeMaS, Performance Failure Appraisal Inventory (PFAI), and achievement motivation test (AMT). The obtained data were analyzed using SPSS and AMOS version 22 software. This study was conducted in 2021, and the questionnaires were designed and distributed online using the Porsline platform. Results: The results of the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) support the two components of envy based on the original version (GFI = 0.95, CFI = 0.92, RMSEA = 0.08). The results showed a statistically significant value (P < 0.001) with χ² (df) values of 87.32. A significant relationship was observed between benign envy and achievement motivation (r = 0.18, P < 0.01), but no significant relationship was observed with fear of failure (r = 0.09, P > 0.01). Unlike benign envy, malicious envy has a moderate significant positive relationship with fear of failure (r = 0.35, P < 0.01) and a significant negative correlation with achievement motivation (r = -0.28, P < 0.01). The Cronbach’s alpha for benign envy was found to be α = 0.672, and for malicious envy, it was α = 0.745. Conclusions: The BeMaS showed good internal consistency in an Iranian adult sample. As a result, the Persian version of the BeMaS has good reliability and validity for assessing envy in the Iranian population.