The Medical Social Self-Efficacy Scale for use in culturally diverse groups

Immigrants account for a quarter of Australia's total population. Self-regulatory health practices in chronic illness management are dependent on patients' understanding of health behaviours that are required of them, and their ability to communicate effectively in a medical context. This study sought to address a gap in the intercultural medical communication literature by examining patients' perceived ability to perform different communication behaviours. The Medical Social Self-efficacy Scale (MSSE) was developed to assess social self-efficacy within a medical context, for patients of diverse cultural backgrounds. Validation of the MSSE scale with a sample of 113 persons from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds indicated that the scale has good internal consistency, with a Cronbach's alpha coefficient of .85. A factor analysis yielded two factors (knowledge acquisition/medical clarification, assertive communication) which accounted for 64% of the total variance. Split-half reliability of the MSSE scale was .84. Predictive validity of the MSSE scale was found for the mental health component and general health subscale of the Short-Form (SF-12). Evidence of concurrent validity was found with the active coping, planning and positive reframing subscales of the Brief Cope. The results indicate that the MSSE scale appears to be a psychometrically sound instrument.

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Inaugural APS Health Psychology Conference

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