Development of the Social Relationship Expectations Scale: protocol for a multi-country, multi-method observational...

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Public Health
• Sociology

Background:

• Loneliness is a significant global public health issue with limited intervention strategies.
• The Social Relationship Expectations (SRE) Framework provides a theoretical basis for understanding social connection.
• A validated scale is needed to measure SRE across its six dimensions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a scale measuring Social Relationship Expectations (SRE).
• To assess SRE across six interdependent dimensions within diverse cultural contexts.
• To provide a tool for mechanism-based interventions aimed at reducing loneliness.

Main Methods:

• A mixed-methods approach combining inductive and deductive techniques in a multicountry observational study.
• Item extraction from existing qualitative research and a new focus group study with older adults in Myanmar and Thailand.
• Expert consensus via a Delphi process across five world regions, followed by psychometric evaluation using classical test theory and network analysis.

Main Results:

• The protocol details the methodology for developing the SRE scale, including item generation and expert review.
• Psychometric properties will be assessed using classical test theory and network analysis to ensure scale validity and reliability.
• The scale will be administered in English, German, and Chinese to facilitate international research.

Conclusions:

• The developed SRE scale will fill a critical knowledge gap in loneliness research.
• This tool will enable the creation of more effective, mechanism-based interventions for loneliness.
• The study emphasizes global applicability and cross-cultural validation of the SRE scale.