Development of an assessment scale to measure psychological sense of community in adolescents

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to develop a scale to measure adolescent psychological sense of community in the school and neighbourhood environments. This involved three studies. In study 1, adolescents were interviewed to obtain their opinions on their school and neighbourhood environments. Males and females in grades 7, 9, and 11 (N = 179) were asked five open-ended questions based on McMillan and Chavis' (1986) model of sense of community. From the interview responses, two 100-item scales, one scale for the school environment and one for the neighbourhood environment were created. In study 2, these 100-item scales were administered to a second group of adolescents in grades 7, 9, and 11 (N = 745). Factor analyses resulted in an 18-item measure of school environment and a 14-item measure of neighbourhood environment. In study 3, factor analyses were conducted on the final set of items and the highest-loading items on each factor were retained. Results indicated a 15-item measure of Adolescent Sense of Community for the school and a 14-item measure of Adolescent Sense of Community for the neighbourhood. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)