Evidence of Validity and Reliability for the Spanish Version of the Self-Identified Stage of Recovery

BACKGROUND

The Self-Identified Stage of Recovery (SISR) () is a scale used to assess both the stage of recovery (SISR-A) and the components of the process of personal recovery (SISR-B). This study aimed to develop the Spanish version of the SISR and obtain evidence of validity and reliability in a sample of 230 users of community mental health services.

METHOD

The Spanish version of the SISR was developed following the translation-back translation procedure, with the support of a committee of experienced experts. The SISR was examined in terms of dimensional structure, internal consistency, relationships with other variables (i.e., the Maryland Recovery Assessment Scale [MARS-12] and the Dispositional Hope Scale [DHS]), and temporal stability ( = 66). Differential item functioning (DIF) by gender was analysed.

RESULTS

The study confirmed the unidimensionality of the SISR-B and suitable internal consistency of its scores (ω = .83, α = .83). Scores from both SISR-A and SISR-B showed good temporal stability and the SISR-B displayed strong correlations with the MARS-12 ( = .78) and the DHS ( = .67). No DIF was found.

CONCLUSIONS

This study supports the validity and reliability of the scores of the Spanish version of the SISR.

Differential Item Functioning in the WHODAS 2.0 Scale in Schizophrenia: An Application of the Rasch Trees Method Based on Demographic and Clinical Covariates

Identifying disability score differences in people with schizophrenia according to sociodemographic and clinical variables can help design better rehabilitation or care programs, but in order to compare the scores, it is necessary to confirm the measurement invariance. This study analyses differential item functioning (DIF) in the WHODAS 2.0 (WHO Disability Assessment Schedule) by applying two procedures based on Rasch trees (TREE-PCM and PCM-IFT). A total of 352 patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorder aged between 18 and 55 years took part. Sociodemographic (gender, age, marital status, and education) and clinical (depressive symptomatology, and presence of positive and negative symptoms) covariates were analysed in each of the WHODAS 2.0 domains. The TREE-PCM did not detect DIF, while with PCM-IFT an item with DIF was detected for the age variable. Although the findings suggest that only one item presents DIF, this refers to important issues when assessing functioning in patients with schizophrenia and should be reviewed.

The Screen for Cognitive Impairment in Psychiatry: Proposal for a polytomous scoring system

The Screen for Cognitive Impairment in Psychiatry is a simple, fast, and easy to administer scale that has been validated in clinical and community samples. The aim of this study was to propose a polytomous scoring system for the Screen for Cognitive Impairment in Psychiatry and to demonstrate its functioning, thus providing new and complementary information regarding the utility and precision of this screening tool. Three hundred seventy-six Spanish patients diagnosed with schizophrenia spectrum disorder were evaluated. A polytomous scoring system was generated and analyzed by means of the partial credit model. Category assessment revealed optimal functioning after collapsing the 7-category system to 1 with either 5 or 4 categories, depending on the item. The proposed polytomous scoring system shows good psychometric properties and an adequate fit to the partial credit model. These results provide further confirmation of the test's utility in clinical settings and of its suitability for detecting cognitive impairment.