Dataset Information

Measurement of alienation among adolescents: construct validity of three scales on powerlessness, meaninglessness and social isolation.

ABSTRACT: Background:Psychological alienation is an important concept in the study of adolescents' health and behavior but no gold standard for measuring alienation among adolescents exists. There is a need for new scales with high validity for use in adolescent health and social research. The purpose of the present study was to develop and validate alienation scales in accordance with Seeman's conceptualization of alienation focusing on three independent variants specifically relevant in adolescent health research: powerlessness, meaninglessness and social isolation. Methods:Cross-sectional data from 3083 adolescents aged 13 to 15 years from the Danish contribution to the cross-national study Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) were used. We identified and developed items, addressed content and face validity through interviews, and examined the criterion-related construct validity of the scales using graphical loglinear Rasch models (GLLRM). Results:The three scales each comprised three to five face valid items. The powerlessness scale reflected the adolescent's expectancy as to whether his/her behavior can determine the outcome or reinforcement he/she seeks. The meaninglessness scale reflected the expectancy as to whether satisfactory predictions regarding the effects of one's behavior are possible. Finally, the social isolation scale reflected whether the adolescent had a low expectancy for inclusion and social acceptance. All scales contained some uniform local dependency and differential item functioning. However, only to a limited degree, which could be accounted for using GLLRM. Thus the scales fitted GLLRMs and can therefore be considered to be essentially construct valid and essentially objective. Conclusion:The three alienation scales appear to be content and face valid and fulfill the psychometric properties of a good construct valid reflective scale. This suggests that the scales may be appropriate in future large-scale surveys to examine the relation between alienation and a range of adolescent health outcomes such as health, behavior and wellbeing.

SUBMITTER: Rayce SB

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5934919 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Similar Datasets

Project description:BACKGROUND:The Observable Movement Quality (OMQ) Scale measures generic movement quality. Each item of the OMQ Scale focuses on a different element; together, the 15 items assess the whole construct of movement quality. OBJECTIVE:The aim of this study was to determine the construct validity of the OMQ Scale using 7 hypotheses defined to conform to the Consensus-Based Standards for the Selection of Health Measurement Instruments. DESIGN:This was an exploratory validation study. METHODS:A pediatric physical therapist assessed motor performance in 101 children using an age-specific motor test and the OMQ Scale. The direction, magnitude, and rationale for 7 hypotheses, which concerned relationships (n = 2), probability of low scores (n = 4), and difference between diagnosis subgroups (n = 1), were defined. RESULTS:The results confirmed 6 of the 7 hypotheses, indicating sufficient construct validity. Significant positive relationships were found between OMQ Scale total scores and the severity of motor disabilities (r = 0.72) and z scores on motor tests (r = 0.60). Probabilities for low scores on OMQ Scale items-exceeding the chi-square critical value-were confirmed for children diagnosed with spasticity, psychomotor retardation, mitochondrial diseases, and ataxia; however, probabilities for low OMQ Scale item scores on strength regulation in children with ataxia were not confirmed. OMQ Scale total scores for children who were not ambulatory because of neurological conditions were significantly different from those for children who were not ambulatory because of fatigue (r = 0.66). LIMITATIONS:The sample of children was based on theoretical assumptions about relevant variations in clinical representations; on the basis of the results, it appears that children with low strength regulation were underrepresented. CONCLUSION:The confirmation of nearly all hypotheses supported the validity of the OMQ Scale for measuring movement quality in clinical practice in addition to standardized age-adequate motor performance tests.

Project description:Study objectivesPsychosocial factors such as outcome expectancy, perceived stigma, socio-emotional support, consideration of future consequences, and psychological reactance likely influence adolescent adherence to antiretroviral treatments. Culturally-adapted and validated tools for measuring these factors in African adolescents are lacking. We aimed to identify culturally-specific factors of importance to establishing local construct validity in Botswana.MethodsUsing in-depth interviews of 34 HIV+ adolescents, we explored how the psychosocial factors listed above are perceived in this cultural context. We evaluated six scales that have been validated in other contexts. We also probed for additional factors that the adolescents considered important to their HIV medication adherence. Analyses were conducted with an analytic framework approach using NVivo9 software.ResultsWhile the construct validity of some Western-derived assessment tools was confirmed, other tools were poorly representative of their constructs in this cultural context. Tools chosen to evaluate HIV-related outcome expectancy and perceived stigma were well-understood and relevant to the adolescents. Feedback from the adolescents suggested that tools to measure all other constructs need major modifications to obtain construct validity in Botswana. The scale regarding future consequences was poorly understood and contained several items that lacked relevance for the Batswana adolescents. They thought psychological reactance played an important role in adherence, but did not relate well to many components of the reactance scale. Measurement of socio-emotional support needs to focus on the adolescent-parent relationship, rather than peer-support in this cultural context. Denial of being HIV-infected was an unexpectedly common theme. Ambivalence about taking medicines was also expressed.DiscussionIn-depth interviews of Batswana adolescents confirmed the construct validity of some Western-developed psychosocial assessment tools, but demonstrated limitations in others. Previously underappreciated factors related to HIV medication adherence, such as denial and ambivalence, should be further explored.

Dataset Information

Measurement of alienation among adolescents: construct validity of three scales on powerlessness, meaninglessness and social isolation.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets