Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-tf8b9 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-25T18:14:41.987Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Psychometric Properties of Two Self-Report Suicide Assessment and Intervention Competency Measures in a Sample of Vocational Rehabilitation Support Staff

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 November 2016

Emily M. Lund ,
Jared C. Schultz ,
Michael R. Nadorff ,
Kate Galbraith  and
Katie B. Thomas
Emily M. Lund*
Affiliation:
Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation, Boston University, 940 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215, USA
Jared C. Schultz
Affiliation:
Department of Special Education and Rehabilitation, Utah State University, 2865 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT, 84322, USA
Michael R. Nadorff
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Mississippi State University, PO Box 6161, Mississippi State, MS, 39762, USA; Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
Kate Galbraith
Affiliation:
Utah State Office of Rehabilitation, 175 North Main Street, No. 101, Heber, UT, 84049, USA
Katie B. Thomas
Affiliation:
University of California-San Diego, VA Health Care System-San Diego, University of California, 3350 La Jolla Village Drive (116B), San Diego, CA, 92161, USA
*
Address for correspondence: Emily M. Lund PhD, Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation, Boston University, 940 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215, USA. E-mail: [email protected]/[email protected].
Get access

Abstract

We analysed the psychometric properties of two published self-report suicide assessment competency rating scales – the Suicide Competency Inventory (SCI) and the Suicide Competency Assessment Form (SCAF) – in a sample of 93 public-sector vocational rehabilitation support staff from six states in the United States. Both measures demonstrated very good to excellent internal consistency in our sample. Exploratory factor analysis with principal axis factoring indicated the SCI loads on a two-factor model in this sample, as opposed to the three-factor model proposed by the measure's authors. The SCAF loaded on a single factor, consistent with the theoretical model proposed by the original authors. The SCI and SCAF were highly correlated with each other, providing initial evidence of convergent construct validity. These results provide initial support for the use of these measures as a reliable and valid means of assessing perceived suicide assessment competency in vocational rehabilitation support staff.

Keywords

suicidecompetencysupport staffvocational rehabilitationpsychometrics
Type
Articles
Information
The Australian Journal of Rehabilitation Counselling , Volume 23 , Issue 1 , July 2017 , pp. 52 - 68
Check for updates
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s) 2016 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Buja, A., & Eyuboglu, N. (1992). Remarks on parallel analysis. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 27, 509–540.Google Scholar
Cattell, R.B. (1966). The scree test for the number of factors. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 1, 245–276.Google Scholar
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2015). Suicide facts at a glance. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/suicide-datasheet-a.pdf.Google Scholar
Cerny, C.A., & Kaiser, H.F. (1977). A study of a measure of sampling adequacy for factor-analytic correlation matrices. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 12 (1), 43–47.Google Scholar
Commission on Rehabilitation Counselor Certification. (2010). Code of Professional Ethics for Rehabilitation Counselors. Schaumburg, IL: Author.Google Scholar
Condron, S.D., Garraza, L.G., Walrath, C.M., McKeon, R., Goldston, D.B., & Heilbron, N.S. (2015). Identifying and referring youths at risk for suicide following participation in school‐based gatekeeper training. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 45, 461–476. doi:10.1111/sltb.1214.Google Scholar
Cramer, R.J., Johnson, S.M., Mclaughlin, J., Rausch, E.M., & Conroy, M.A. (2013). Suicide risk assessment for psychology doctoral programs: Core competencies and a framework for training. Training and Education in Professional Psychology, 7, 1–11.Google Scholar
Curtin, S.C., Warner, M., & Hedegaard, H. (2016). Increase in Suicide in the United States, 1999–2014. NCHS Data Brief, No 241. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db241.pdf.Google Scholar
De Winter, J.C., & Dodou, D. (2012). Factor recovery by principal axis factoring and maximum likelihood factor analysis as a function of factor pattern and sample size. Journal of Applied Statistics, 39, 695–710.Google Scholar
Drapeau, C.W., & McIntosh, J.L. (2015). USA Suicide 2014: Official Final Data. Washington, DC: American Association of Suicidology. Retrieved from http://www.suicidology.org/Portals/14/docs/Resources/FactSheets/2014/2014datapgsv1b.pdf.Google Scholar
Fishbain, D.A., Bruns, D., Meyer, L.J., Lewis, J.E., Gao, J., & Disorbio, J.M. (2012). Exploration of the relationship between disability perception, preference for death over disability, and suicidality in patients with acute and chronic pain. Pain Medicine, 13, 552–561.Google Scholar
Gaskin, C.J., & Happell, B. (2014). On exploratory factor analysis: A review of recent evidence, an assessment of current practice, and recommendations for future use. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 51, 511–521.Google Scholar
George, D., & Mallery, P. (2003). SPSS for Windows Step by Step: A Simple Guide and Reference. Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.Google Scholar
Giannini, M.J., Bergmark, B., Kreshover, S., Elias, E., Plummer, C., & O'Keefe, E. (2010). Understanding suicide and disability through three major disabling conditions: Intellectual disability, spinal cord injury, and multiple sclerosis. Disability and Health Journal, 3 (2), 74–78.Google Scholar
Goodwyn, F. (2012). Question number two: How many factors? Online Submission, ERIC. Retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED529100.pdf.Google Scholar
Graham, R.D., Rudd, M.D., & Bryan, C.J. (2011). Primary care providers’ views regarding assessing and treating suicidal patients. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 41, 614–623.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Horn, J.L. (1965). A rationale and test for the number of factors in factor analysis. Psychometrika, 30, 179–185.Google Scholar
Isaac, M., Elias, B., Katz, L.Y., Shay-Lee, B., Deane, F.P., Enns, M.W., & Sareen, J. (2009). Gatekeeper training as a preventative intervention for suicide: A systematic review. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 54, 260–268.Google Scholar
Kelsey, D.J. (2012). The Development and Exploratory Validation of the Awareness of Social Justice for Individuals with Disabilities Scale. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Utah State University.Google Scholar
Lund, E.M., Nadorff, M.R., & Seader, K. (2016). The relationship between suicidality and disability when accounting for depressive symptomology. Rehabilitation Counseling Bulletin, 59, 185–188.Google Scholar
Lund, E.M., Schultz, J.C., & Nadorff, M.R. (in press). The factor structure, internal consistency, and convergent validity of two suicide assessment competency measures in vocational rehabilitation counselors. Rehabilitation Counseling Bulletin.Google Scholar
O'Connor, B.P. (2000). SPSS and SAS programs for determining the number of components using parallel analysis and Velicer's MAP test. Behavior Research Methods, Instrumentation, and Computers, 32, 396–402.Google Scholar
Pompili, M., Forte, A., Palermo, M., Stefani, H., Lamis, D.A., Serafini, G., . . . Girardi, P. (2012). Suicide risk in multiple sclerosis: A systematic review of current literature. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 73, 411–417.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Segers, M., & Rawana, J. (2014). What do we know about suicidality in autism spectrum disorders? A systematic review. Autism Research, 7, 507–521. doi:10.1002/aur.1375.Google Scholar
Snedecor, G.W., & Cochran, W.G. (1989). Statistical Methods (8th ed.). Iowa City: Iowa State University Press.Google Scholar
Tinsley, H.E.A., & Tinsley, D.J. (1987). Uses of factor analysis in counseling psychology research. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 34, 414–424.Google Scholar
Velicer, W.F. (1976). Determining the number of components from the matrix of partial correlations. Psychometrika, 41, 321–327.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wetzel, H.H., Gehl, C.R., Dellefave-Castillo, L., Schiffman, J.F., Shannon, K.M., & Paulsen, J.S. (2011). Suicidal ideation in Huntington disease: The role of comorbidity. Psychiatry Research, 188, 372–376.Google Scholar
Yong, A.G., & Pearce, S. (2013). A beginner's guide to factor analysis: Focusing on exploratory factor analysis. Tutorials in Quantitative Methods for Psychology, 9 (2), 79–94.Google Scholar