Neil Abell

Creating and Validating Rapid Assessment Instruments for Practice and Research: Part 2

In this age of accountability, social work practitioners face greater demands to demonstrate the effectiveness of their interventions. A practical way to accomplish this is to use rapid assessment instruments (RAIs) to measure a client’s level of functioning so that any subsequent change in functioning can be accurately detected over time. This first article in this two-part series outlined how to conceptualize and create an RAI, and how to plan and subsequently implement a design testing the newly created scale’s psychometric properties, laying the groundwork for Part 2 of this series. The purpose of this article is to further develop the foundations that were introduced in Part 1 by using the authors’ own works to illustrate how to develop a new scale and test its psychometric properties. Decision-making strategies and standards for how to interpret scale psychometrics are provided.

Examining the Effects of Meditation Techniques on Psychosocial Functioning

Objective: An experiment was conducted to determine the effects of chanting the maha mantra on stress, depression, and the three gunas—sattva (enlightenment), rajas (passion), and tamas (inertia)—described in the Vedas as the basis of human psychology. Primary hypotheses of the study were that the maha mantra group would increase sattva and decrease stress, depression, rajas, and tamas significantly more than the other groups. Method: Participants were tested at pretest, posttest, and follow-up, with testing times separated by 4 weeks. Participants were randomly assigned to a maha mantra group, an alternate mantra (placebo) group, and a control group. Results: MANOVA results supported these hypotheses from pretest to posttest at p < .05 for all dependent variables except rajas. Conclusions: The authors suggest that the maha mantra has potential in addressing problems related to stress and depression and that it be considered as one possible component of a spiritual approach to social work practice.

Measuring stigma among health care and social service providers: The HIV/AIDS Provider Stigma Inventory.

Initial validation of the HIV/AIDS Provider Stigma Inventory (HAPSI), piloted on a sample of 174 nursing students, supported the psychometric qualities of a suite of measures capturing tendencies to stigmatize and discriminate against people living with HIV/AIDS (PLHA). Derived from social psychology and mindfulness theories, separate scales addressing awareness, acceptance, and action were designed to include notions of labeling, stereotyping, outgrouping, and discriminating. These were enhanced to capture differences associated with personal characteristics of PLHA that trigger secondary stigma (e.g., sexual orientation, injection drug use, multiple sex partners) and fears regarding instrumental and symbolic stigma. Reliabilities were strong (coefficients α for 16 of 19 resulting measures ranged from 0.80 to 0.98) and confirmatory factor analyses indicated good model fit for two multidimensional (Awareness and Acceptance) and one unidimensional (Action) measure. Evidence of convergent construct validity supported accuracy of primary constructs. Implications for training and professional socialization in health care are discussed.

Examining HIV/AIDS provider stigma: assessing regional concerns in the islands of the Eastern Caribbean.

Abstract HIV/AIDS provider stigma has been understudied in the context of prevention, testing, and treatment. Results of a survey of persons associated with HIV/AIDS education, health care, and social service delivery in the Eastern Caribbean are described. Reliable constructs were observed for warmth towards PLHA, comfort in association with them, tendencies to distance from or condemn them, beliefs in viral transmission myths, and perceived capacity to counsel effectively. Most discrimination was directed towards MSM and IDUs. Providers whose roles were likely to involve touch felt less comfortable around PLHA and more likely to distance from and condemn them than providers whose roles were not. Implications for improved measurement and incorporation of mindfulness techniques in stigma intervention are discussed.

Trauma Resilience Scale: Validation of Protective Factors Associated With Adaptation Following Violence

Objectives: The Trauma Resilience Scale (TRS), assessing protective factors associated with positive adaptation following violence, was tested in three waves of data collection. Empirical and theoretical literature shaped subscale and item formation emphasizing resilience following physical abuse, sexual abuse, intimate partner violence, and/or a serious threat or injury to life. Methods: Content validation experts helped refine items. The three-factor model, including problem solving, relationships, and optimism, was tested (n = 270). A four-factor model adding spirituality was also tested (n = 307). Results: Both models demonstrated strong reliability, validity, and factor analyses results. However, the four-factor model was best supported by the data. Conclusions: Both global scales and individual factor subscales are supported for clinical and research administrations.

The Homesickness and Contentment Scale: Developing a Culturally Sensitive Measure of Adjustment for Asians

This article reports the validity and reliability of the Homesickness and Contentment (HC) scale. The HC scale is a 20-item scale that evolved from a 30-item Homesickness, Loneliness, and Depression scale. The HC scale is intended to be culturally sensitive to an Asian population in measuring emotional and psychological adjustment to a new culture. Unlike other measures of adjustment developed for and tested on Western samples, the HC scale takes into account the private nature of Asians when examining symptoms of homesickness and contentment. Data collected from 201 Chinese and Korean graduate students and spouses in an American university were used for various psychometric tests. Overall, the HC scale showed excellent subscale reliability, high global reliability, high face and factorial validities, and preliminary construct validity. Discussions on validity, reliability, and utility are presented.

Development and Evaluation of the Adherence Attitude Inventory

The Adherence Attitude Inventory is a 28-item Likert-type scaled rapid assessment instrument that consists of four distinct constructs (cognitive functioning, patient-provider communication, self-efficacy, and commitment to adherence) that are related to adherence to medication. Although the Adherence Attitude Inventory is not HIV specific, the authors created it in response to a call by the HIV community for instrument development. The focus of this article is on instrument development and pilot testing of psychometric properties.

Assessing Willingness to Care for Persons With AIDS: Validation of a New Measure

Objective: This article describes the development and validation of the Willingness to Care Scale, a multifactorial measure assessing the experiences of informal caregivers for persons living with AIDS (PLAs). Willingness to care describes one’s attitude toward providing emotional, instrumental, and nursing support. Method: Interviews were conducted with 155 caregivers of PLAs on caregiving and psychosocial concerns. Results: Strong evidence was found for factorial and content validity and reliability. Conclusion: The tool may be used by social workers to assess the potential for and monitor the functioning of task-focused caregiving relationships. Issues in sampling for HIV/AIDS research are discussed.

Human Rights Engagement and Exposure: New Scales to Challenge Social Work Education.

Objectives: Advancing human rights is a core competency of U.S. social work education; yet, human rights attitudes and behaviors have never been measured in the social work literature. Thus, this article describes the development and initial validation of two scales, Human Rights Engagement in Social Work (HRESW) and Human Rights Exposure in Social Work (HRXSW). Method: The scales were validated using a purposive sample of 287 social work students. Results: Factor analysis supported a 25-item HRESW and an independent 11-item HRXSW. Reliability was assessed: HRESW (α = .894) and HRXSW (α = .734). Conclusions: The HRESW and the HRXSW have direct applicability to social work education. Through measuring exposure and engagement, we can begin assessing the quality of human rights education in social work.

Examining the relationship between spousal involvement in Gam-Anon and relapse behaviors in pathological gamblers.

The present investigation focused on Gamblers Anonymous (GA) members in Ohio to ascertain whether or not spousal participation in Gam-Anon, the companion support group, decreased the gamblers relapse into gambling behavior. A cross-sectional survey of 43 GA members was conducted using a self-administered questionnaire. While no significant difference was found in the relapse of those gamblers with or without a spouse in Gam-Anon, the degree to which the gambler had engaged in other addictive-like behaviors in the past did appear to be related to relapse. Those gamblers who had not relapsed reported significantly more engagement in past addictive-like behaviors (excessive overeating, drinking, and using drugs) than those who had relapsed. Additionally, their spouses had also engaged in addictive-like behaviors in the past. Discussion suggests possible explanations for the findings. Implications are drawn for both outcome measures and research with self-help groups.