A French Adaptation of the Affective and Cognitive Measure of Empathy (ACME-F)

Vachon and Lynam (2016) recently introduced a new measure of empathy, the Affective and Cognitive Measure of Empathy (ACME). Besides assessing the traditional dimensions of cognitive and affective empathy, the ACME includes an affective dissonance scale that covers antiempathy, an important feature of the construct with prominent predictive value not included in other empathy measures. The aim of this study is to provide data on the French version of the ACME. A sample of 851 community-dwelling participants (59.4% female) completed online the ACME questionnaire along with other measures of empathy, dark and pathological personality traits, and aggression. The original ACME bifactor exploratory structural equation modeling structure (i.e., the three empathy dimensions of Cognitive, Affective Resonance, and Affective Dissonance with positive and negative wording items as method bifactors) was successfully reproduced with the French version. Furthermore, these scales displayed satisfying internal consistency coefficients, as well as good item properties according to Classical Test Theory. Convergent validity indices were also similar to those reported for the original English version, and scale scores reached full invariance across gender and proved to be partially invariant across language when comparing the present data to those from the original validation study. The French version of the ACME is well aligned with the original English version and offers a valuable alternative to French researchers and clinicians interested in measuring the various dimensions of empathy.

Automated summary

Vachon and Lynam (2016) introduced the Affective and Cognitive Measure of Empathy (ACME), which includes an affective dissonance scale not found in other empathy measures. This study examined the French version of the ACME and found it to be consistent with the original English version in terms of structure, internal consistency, and validity. The French version provides a valuable alternative for researchers and clinicians interested in measuring different dimensions of empathy.