The development of an instrument to measure self-consistency

The maintenance of self-consistency is a task that engages elderly people, and it can be viewed as an indicator of how well a person can cope with stress in the ageing process. However, there is no reliable and valid instrument to date that measures this phenomenon. To help elderly people to accomplish the task warrants the necessity to develop an instrument to measure self-consistency. The purpose of this study was to develop an instrument to measure self-consistency in elderly people with chronic conditions. The Self-Consistency Scale (SCS) was designed and administered to hearing-impaired elderly people (n = 130) in the north-east part of the USA. Psychometric properties of the SCS were evaluated and the results indicated a promising psychometric integrity. The obtained alpha coefficient for the SCS total scale was 0.89, with a score range of 51-104 and a mean total score of 85.10 (SD = 11.04). Convergent validity of the SCS was established by correlating the SCS to a Visual Analogue Scale--A Sense of Self (VAS), r = 0.60 (P < 0.01). Divergent validity with the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) was established, r = -0.57 (P < 0.01). Maximum likelihood factor analysis with oblimin rotation resulted in a two-factor solution: Factor I, self-knowledge; and Factor II, stability of self-concept.