Psychometric properties and further validation of the emergency reaction questionnaire in a sample of Portuguese adults

Emergencies and disasters are abrupt, unexpected, dangerous events often traumatic. Individuals differ in the way they respond to this kind of adverse experience, depending on varied factors. This study used the Emergency Reaction Questionnaire (ERQ) to assess defensive mechanisms, feelings, and thoughts during emergency and disaster-related situations. The main objective of the present study was to confirm the factor structure and provide further support to the validity of the ERQ on a Portuguese sample. Here we replicated previous findings in showing that people who are more prone to react in an organized way in emergencies tend to have lower anxiety levels and a greater tendency for sensation seeking. We also found that females score lower than males; that ERQ specific readiness scores slightly increase with age and people who have risky jobs or routinely engage in extreme sports scored higher on the ERQ scales (meaning they act more readily and organized in an emergency). The ERQ and its Portuguese version show to be a psychometrically sound and valid measurement of emergency behavior, able to assess individual differences in the way people perform during various emergencies, and can be used in future research and in practice for screening or measuring training efficiency.