The Development and Validation of an Interest and Skill Inventory on Educational Choices (ISEC)

2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (5) ◽  
pp. 817-828
Author(s):  
Evelyne E. M. Meens ◽  
Anouke W. E. A. Bakx ◽  
Joris Mulder ◽  
Jaap J. A. Denissen

Abstract. This study aimed at developing and validating a new instrument to facilitate late adolescents and young adults to choose a higher education major. For the main study, the sample consisted of 6,215 late adolescents and young adults ( Mage = 19.50, SD = 1.89, 42.3% female). After rational scale construction based on the RIASEC model of Holland (1997) , several statistical analyses were conducted. In four studies, structural validity, internal consistency, and construct validity were examined. Our analyses showed that adequate structural validity, internal consistency, and construct validity were established. A 7-factor structure was found, in which the investigative domain split into two subscales. The overall results suggested that the new instrument is reliable and valid as an orientation instrument in applied settings in secondary and higher education.

Author(s):  
Monique M. Ridosh ◽  
Colleen Stiles-Shields ◽  
Alexa Stern ◽  
Adrien M. Winning ◽  
Lara Anderson ◽  
...  

PURPOSE: The purpose of this longitudinal study was to evaluate the internal consistency reliability and construct validity of the Adolescent/Young Adult Self-Management and Independence Scale-II (AMIS-II), an interview-based measure of self-management for youth with chronic health conditions. METHODS: A diverse sample of adolescents and young adults (AYA) with spina bifida (SB) (n = 64 AYA; mean 20.88; age range 18–25 years) completed an AMIS-II interview. Six years earlier, parents from 55 families completed questionnaires that assessed children’s responsibility for SB-related care (Sharing of Spina Bifida Management Responsibilities) and their ability to perform skills across condition-related tasks (The Spina Bifida Independence Survey). Parents also reported on child’s communication skills, adaptive behaviors, and independent management of finances (Adaptive Behavior Assessment System-Second Edition; Scales of Independent Behavior-Revised). Descriptive and correlational analyses were conducted to assess the construct validity and the internal consistency reliability of the AMIS-II. RESULTS: The AMIS-II demonstrated excellent internal consistency reliability (AMIS-II total scale α= 0.95; subscales α= 0.90 –0.91). Evidence in support of construct validity was found in associations between the AMIS-II and measures of child responsibility for SB-related care, ability to perform condition-related skills, and adaptive behaviors (r’s = 0.378 –0.777; p’s <  0.05). CONCLUSION: This study provides further evidence of strong reliability and validity for the AMIS-II. Additional research with this measure will facilitate a better understanding of factors related to self-management behaviors in adolescents and young adults with spina bifida.


Young ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 110330882110086
Author(s):  
Iana Tzankova ◽  
Gabriele Prati ◽  
Elvira Cicognani

Prior studies revealed that low levels of youth political activity are not necessarily indicative of complete disengagement from societal affairs but could be accompanied by interest and latent involvement stemming from a standby or monitorial attitude. However, no prior study has investigated patterns of citizenship orientations including both manifest and latent engagement defined by one’s position towards institutional politics, according to different forms of participation. A questionnaire was filled out by 1,732 late adolescents and young adults in Italy (15–30 years old, M = 19.73, 60.7% female). Cluster analysis identified six profiles of citizenship orientations across different types of participatory activities (political, activist, political online and civic): active trustful, active distrustful, standby trustful, standby distrustful, unengaged trustful and unengaged distrustful. The results showed that each level of engagement—active, standby and unengaged—could be further differentiated between trustful and distrustful based on their attitude towards institutions and the electoral process.


2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marco Monticone ◽  
Cristiano Sconza ◽  
Igor Portoghese ◽  
Tomohiko Nishigami ◽  
Benedict M. Wand ◽  
...  

Abstract Background and aim Growing attention is being given to utilising physical function measures to better understand and manage knee osteoarthritis (OA). The Fremantle Knee Awareness Questionnaire (FreKAQ), a self-reported measure of body-perception specific to the knee, has never been validated in Italian patients. The aims of this study were to culturally adapt and validate the Italian version of the FreKAQ (FreKAQ-I), to allow for its use with Italian-speaking patients with painful knee OA. Methods The FreKAQ-I was developed by means of forward–backward translation, a final review by an expert committee and a test of the pre-final version to evaluate its comprehensibility. The psychometric testing included: internal structural validity by Rasch analysis; construct validity by assessing hypotheses of FreKAQ correlations with the knee injury and osteoarthritis outcome score (KOOS), a pain intensity numerical rating scale (PI-NRS), the pain catastrophising scale (PCS), and the Hospital anxiety and depression score (HADS) (Pearson’s correlations); known-group validity by evaluating the ability of FreKAQ scores to discriminate between two groups of participants with different clinical profiles (Mann–Whitney U test); reliability by internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha) and test–retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient, ICC2.1); and measurement error by calculating the minimum detectable change (MDC). Results It took one month to develop a consensus-based version of the FreKAQ-I. The questionnaire was administered to 102 subjects with painful knee OA and was well accepted. Internal structural validity confirmed the substantial unidimensionality of the FreKAQ-I: variance explained was 53.3%, the unexplained variance in the first contrast showed an eigenvalue of 1.8, and no local dependence was detected. Construct validity was good as all of the hypotheses were met; correlations: KOOS (rho = 0.38–0.51), PI-NRS (rho = 0.35–0.37), PCS (rho = 0.47) and HADS (Anxiety rho = 0.36; Depression rho = 0.43). Regarding known-groups validity, FreKAQ scores were significantly different between groups of participants demonstrating high and low levels of pain intensity, pain catastrophising, anxiety, depression and the four KOOS subscales (p ≤ 0.004). Internal consistency was acceptable (α = 0.74) and test–retest reliability was excellent (ICC = 0.92, CI 0.87–0.94). The MDC95 was 5.22 scale points. Conclusion The FreKAQ-I is unidimensional, reliable and valid in Italian patients with painful knee OA. Its use is recommended for clinical and research purposes.


The students are generally affected by stress especially in professional courses like medical, engineering are affected by higher stress, this leads to psychological problems such as high amount of depression, nervousness, cardiac problems etc.,. Mental health among the students indicates growing concern along with opportunity, because of the large number of people who could be reached during an important period of life. College premises, by their scholarly nature, are also well positioned to develop, evaluate, and disseminate best practices. In short, colleges offer a unique opportunity to address one of the most significant public health problems among late adolescents and young adults. Busy schedules crammed with curricular, co-curricular and extracurricular activities can affect the student’s physical and mental health, especially on delayed eating and improper and less sleeping. These stressors can compound over time, leading to even greater levels of stress. College premises, by their scholarly nature, are also well positioned to develop, evaluate, and disseminate best practices. In short, colleges offer a unique opportunity to address one of the most significant public health problems among late adolescents and young adults. This study aims to analyse the stress among the engineering students from sample survey. A quantitative method was used in gathering and analysing the data by distributing questionnaires to the students. The results obtained were analysed for different factors that cause stress among students


2007 ◽  
Vol 157 (6) ◽  
pp. 701-708 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ginevra Corneli ◽  
Carolina Di Somma ◽  
Flavia Prodam ◽  
Jaele Bellone ◽  
Simonetta Bellone ◽  
...  

ObjectiveTo define the appropriate diagnostic cut-off limits for the GH response to GHRH+arginine (ARG) test and IGF-I levels, using receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve analysis, in late adolescents and young adults.Design and methodsWe studied 152 patients with childhood-onset organic hypothalamic–pituitary disease (85 males, age (mean±s.e.m.): 19.2±0.2 years) and 201 normal adolescents as controls (96 males, age: 20.7±0.2 years). Patients were divided into three subgroups on the basis of the number of the other pituitary hormone deficits, excluding GH deficiency (GHD): subgroup A consisted of 35 panhypopituitary patients (17 males, age: 21.2±0.4 years), subgroup B consisted of 18 patients with only one or with no more than two pituitary hormone deficits (7 males, age: 20.2±0.9 years); and subgroup C consisted of 99 patients without any known hormonal pituitary deficits (60 males, age: 18.2±0.2 years). Both patients and controls were lean (body mass index, BMI<25 kg/m2). Patients in subgroup A were assumed to be GHD, whereas in patients belonging to subgroups B and C the presence of GHD had to be verified.ResultsFor the GHRH+ARG test, the best pair of highest sensitivity (Se; 100%) and specificity (Sp; 97%) was found choosing a peak GH of 19.0 μg/l. For IGF-I levels, the best pair of highest Se (96.6%) and Sp (74.6%) was found using a cut-off point of 160 μg/l (SDS: −1.3). Assuming 19.0 μg/l to be the cut-off point established for GHRH+ARG test, 72.2% of patients in subgroup B and 39.4% in subgroup C were defined as GHD. In patients belonging to group B and C and with a peak GH response <19 μg/l to the test, IGF-I levels were lower than 160 μg/l (or less than 1.3 SDS) in 68.7 and 41.6% of patients respectively predicting severe GHD in 85.7% of panhypopituitary patients (subgroup A).ConclusionsIn late adolescent and early adulthood patients, a GH cut-off limit using the GHRH+ARG test lower than 19.0 μg/l is able to discriminate patients with a suspicion of GHD and does not vary from infancy to early adulthood.


1995 ◽  
Vol 41 (4) ◽  
pp. 311-324 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nancy Van Ranst ◽  
Karine Verschueren ◽  
Alfons Marcoen

Why do adolescents value their grandparents? This was the leading question of an investigation among 563 adolescents and young adults in Flanders (Belgium). The Grandparent Meaning Scale which probes eleven a priori dimensions of meaning, was completed by 147 early adolescents ( M = 12.5 years), 175 middle adolescents ( M = 15.7 years), and 241 late adolescents ( M = 18.9 years). Results show that adolescents generally find their grandparents important and feel close to them. Grandparents are valued primarily because they provide affection, reassurance of worth, and reliable alliance. Relational-affective and caregiving meanings were assigned more often to grandmothers whereas advising, teaching, and narrative roles were ascribed more frequently to grandfathers. Maternal grandparents were generally perceived as more important and closer than paternal grandparents. Early adolescents assigned more importance and meaning to their grandparents than middle and late adolescents. There were no differences between grandsons and granddaughters.


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