| Author: | Ngan, Sin-ying |
| Title: | A study of validity and reliability of the Chinese version means-ends problem solving procedures in the young adults in Hong Kong |
| Degree: | M.Sc. |
| Year: | 2008 |
| Subject: | Hong Kong Polytechnic University -- Dissertations Problem solving Adjustment (Psychology) Social adjustment Young adults -- China -- Hong Kong |
| Department: | School of Nursing |
| Pages: | ix, 129 leaves : ill. ; 30 cm. |
| Language: | English |
| Abstract: | The purpose of this study is to determine the content validity, inter-rater reliability and test-retest reliability of the Chinese version Means-Ends Problem Solving Procedure (C-MEPS) in assessing young adults in Hong Kong. This study has three phases. In phase one, content validity was examined by a seven-member expert panel, which provided both qualitative and quantitative evaluation of the content and cultural relevance, representativeness, of the test items and scoring procedures. With the exception of two items that is related to revenge and stealing, all items were judged to be relevant to the assessment of social problem solving in Hong Kong. The review indicated that 8 of the 10 items (social stories) in the MEPS were relevant and representative of the test construct. We removed two items (5 & 7) in the original MEPS and revised 3 items according to the expert ratings and their written comments. The scoring of irrelevant means was described as abstract and hard to understand. As a result of the review, the Total Mean score and Effectiveness score were regarded as the most appropriate ways to score the social problem solving performance of participants. Phase two of the study examined the convergent validity of the C-MEP with C-BDI and C-SPSI-R. Forty subjects were recruited and their answers to the test were audio-recorded, and they also completed the Chinese Beck's Depression Inventory (C-BDI) and the Chinese Social Problem Solving Inventory Revised (C-SPSI-R). The Total Means score of the C-MEPS had low correlations with the convergent measure of BDI (r = 0.25) and C-SPSI-R (r = .12) respectively. Phase three of the study aims to examine the inter-rater and test-retest reliability, and internal consistency of the C-MEPS. By using the same group of subject in the phase two study, twenty-five subjects were invited to repeat the test four weeks after initial assessment. The ICC for inter-rater reliability of the Total Means and Effectiveness score of the means were 0.82 and 0.78 respectively. The reliability coefficients of individual test items (social stories) ranged from 0.20 to 0.91. For inter-rater reliability, the Total Means (ICC = 0.96) and Effectiveness score (ICC = 0.7) of the C-MEPS were satisfactory. The ICC for the irrelevant means and no means were 0.55 and 0.82 respectively which indicated that the irrelevant means had relatively lower reliability. The ICC for the test-retest reliability of the relevant means, irrelevant means and no means of the MEPS was 0.82, 0.44 and 0.61 respectively. The relevant means also demonstrated good test-retest reliability whereas the latter two found to have relatively low reliability. In sum, the results revealed that the C-MEPS demonstrated higher inter-rater and test-retest reliability in the Total (relevant) Means, Effectiveness score, and No Means. The results implied that we could interpret the social problem solving performance using the Total (relevant) Means, the Effectiveness score, and No Means score rather than Irrelevant Means score. The definition of irrelevant means lacks clarity and might contribute to the low reliability of the C-MEPS. Also, due to the limitation in sample size and variability, further studies should be carried out to examine the factorial, discriminant, and predictive validity of the C-MEPS. |
| Rights: | All rights reserved |
| Access: | restricted access |
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| File | Description | Size | Format | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| b22404636.pdf | For All Users (off-campus access for PolyU Staff & Students only) | 5.01 MB | Adobe PDF | View/Open |
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