Caldas Psychosocial Disability Scale

Abstract

The Escala de Discapacidad Psicosocial de Caldas, also referred to as the Caldas Psychosocial Disability Scale, is a specialized instrument developed in 2023 by Agudelo-Hernández, Romero, and Quintero-Pulgar. Its primary objective is the identification and quantitative measurement of Psychosocial Disability among individuals diagnosed with mental disorders. The development process commenced with a preliminary list of 74 quantitative items.

The scale underwent rigorous psychometric evaluation, leading to the exclusion of two items (57 and 73) due to low content validity coefficients. Validation data were systematically collected in Colombia from a cohort comprising patients diagnosed with mental disorders and their primary caregivers. Subsequent Factor Analysis on the remaining 73 items led to the final consolidation of 33 items, which were confirmed to cluster into six distinct factors. The criteria for item retention were stringent, requiring a factorial load greater than 0.5, adherence to overdetermination criteria, an absence of cross-loadings, and demonstrable theoretical coherence. The development study successfully established both the content validity and Concurrent Validity of the instrument.

Keywords

Adherence to Treatment, Disability in Family Functioning, Mental Disorders, Occupational/Work Disability, Personal and Emotional Disability, Psychosocial Disability, Social Disability, Disabilities, Emotional Disturbances, Family Relations, Psychosocial Factors, Treatment Compliance, Mental Health and Illness Assessment.

Authors

Agudelo-Hernández, Felipe; Romero, Edison Andrés; Quintero-Pulgar, Yudy.

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Purpose

The fundamental objective of the Caldas Psychosocial Disability Scale is to provide a precise and reliable measure for the assessment and quantification of psychosocial disability. This assessment is specifically targeted at individuals who have received a clinical diagnosis of mental disorders, allowing clinicians and researchers to gauge the extent of impairment in various life domains resulting from their condition.

Construct

The core psychological construct that this instrument is meticulously designed to evaluate and quantify is Psychosocial Disability. This construct encompasses the functional limitations and restrictions in participation experienced by individuals in various social, personal, and occupational contexts, stemming from their underlying mental health condition. The scale aims to operationalize this complex construct through its six identified factors.

Validity

The validation process provided strong evidence for both content and concurrent validity. During the initial expert review phase, the entire item set demonstrated excellent content validity, with V Aiken (Content Validity Coefficient) scores consistently exceeding the rigorous 0.8 threshold. This indicated high relevance and representativeness of the items to the intended construct.

Evidence for Concurrent Validity was established by observing statistically significant correlations between the scale’s domains and scores derived from established, validated instruments measuring similar constructs. Specifically, correlations were noted between the Caldas Scale’s domains concerning family or social disability and the well-known Zarit scale (Rodríguez et al., 2016), which measures caregiver burden. Furthermore, the socio-emotional disability domain showed a significant correlation with the Self Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ) (Beusenberg & Orley, 1994).

Reliability

Currently, specific internal consistency or test-retest reliability data for the Escala de Discapacidad Psicosocial de Caldas are not detailed in the provided documentation. Further psychometric studies are necessary to establish the stability and consistency of the instrument’s measurements.

Factor Analysis

A comprehensive exploratory Factor Analysis was executed on the preliminary 73-item version of the scale. This analysis was critical in refining the instrument, leading to the identification and retention of 33 final items. These 33 items successfully grouped into six distinct theoretical factors, representing different dimensions of psychosocial disability.

The item retention criteria were highly stringent, requiring that each selected item meet multiple statistical and theoretical benchmarks: a minimum factorial load of 0.5, adherence to the overdetermination criteria, an absence of significant cross-loadings onto other factors, and maintenance of strong theoretical coherence within its designated factor. These rigorous criteria ensured the construct validity and dimensional purity of the final 33-item scale.

Instrument

Test Type: This is an original inventory/questionnaire designed for psychometric assessment.

Format: The response options for all scale items are structured in a binary or dichotomous format (e.g., Yes/No).

Language Available: The instrument is currently available for use exclusively in Spanish.

Population Group: The scale is designed for administration to adult human populations.

Age Group: Adulthood (18 years and older).

Population Details: The development and initial validation study were conducted using a population cohort based in Colombia. The specific respondent groups included both patients diagnosed with various mental illnesses and their respective primary caregivers.

Test Methodology: The rigorous methodological approach employed for the instrument’s development included standard psychometric procedures, focusing heavily on establishing Test Validity through specific examinations of Concurrent Validity, Content Validity, and the application of Exploratory Factor Analysis.

Keywords

Adherence to Treatment, Disability in Family Functioning, Mental Disorders, Occupational/Work Disability, Personal and Emotional Disability, Psychosocial Disability, Social Disability, Disabilities, Emotional Disturbances, Family Relations, Psychosocial Factors, Treatment Compliance, Mental Health and Illness Assessment.

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Authors and Contact Information

Agudelo-Hernández, Felipe

• Author ORCID Identifier: No data is Available

• Affiliation: Universidad de Manizales

• Email addresses: [email protected]

• Correspondence Address: Universidad de Manizales, Carrea 22 #58-21, Manizales, Caldas, Colombia, 170001

Romero, Edison Andrés

• Author ORCID Identifier: No data is Available

• Affiliation: Dirección Territorial de Salud de Caldas

• Email addresses: [email protected]

• Correspondence Address: No data is Available

Quintero-Pulgar, Yudy

• Author ORCID Identifier: No data is Available

• Affiliation: Agency for International Development – USAID

• Email addresses: No data is Available

• Correspondence Address: No data is Available

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

• Permissions: To obtain formal permission for the use or adaptation of the scale, interested parties are strongly recommended to contact the corresponding author, Felipe Agudelo-Hernández, directly.

• Fee: This instrument was developed for academic and public health use; therefore, it is explicitly stated that this is not a commercial instrument and there is no fee associated with its standard use.

• Test Year: 2023

Reference’s

Agudelo-Hernández, F., Romero, E. A., & Quintero-Pulgar, Y. (2023). Diseño y validez de un instrumento para determinar discapacidad psicosocial asociada a trastornos mentales [Design and validity of an instrument to determine psychosocial disability associated with mental disorders]. Revista Iberoamericana de Diagnóstico y Evaluación Psicologica, 69(3), 161–171. https://doi.org/10.21865/RIDEP69.3.14

Beusenberg, M., & Orley, J. (1994). A user’s guide to the Self Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ). World Health Organization.

Rodríguez, A., Crespo, M., & Olazarán, J. (2016). Adaptación española de la escala de sobrecarga del cuidador de Zarit: Guía para su uso e interpretación. Instituto de Salud Carlos III.

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Items of the Escala de Discapacidad Psicosocial de Caldas

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

No data is Available. The 33 items of the scale are not detailed in the provided materials. To access the full list of items, please consult the original source publication: Agudelo-Hernández, et al. (2023), specifically Table 1, found on pages 164-165.