Development and Validation of the Self-Acceptance Scale for Persons with Early Blindness: The SAS-EB

Abstract

Investigations of self-acceptance are critical to understanding the development and maintenance of psychological health. However, valid and reliable instruments for measuring self-acceptance in persons with early blindness have yet to be developed. The current research describes three studies designed to develop and validate the Self-acceptance Scale for Persons with Early Blindness (SAS-EB). In Study 1, we developed the initial item pool. Thirty-three items were generated, based on data from specialized literature and from 2 focus groups. Items were organized in a three-factor structure, theoretically predicted for SAS-EB - (1) body acceptance, (2) self-protection from social stigmas, and (3) feeling and believing in one's capacities. In Study 2, information obtained from a panel of 9 experts and 22 persons with early blindness representing the target population was used to refine the initial item pool, generating a new pool of 27 items. In Study 3, 318 persons with early blindness (141 women and 177 men), between 18 and 60 years of age (M = 37.74 years, SD = 12.37) answered the new pool of 27 items. After the elimination of 9 items using confirmatory factor analysis, we confirmed the theoretical three-factor structure of the SAS-EB. Study 3 also provided support for the scale's internal consistency and construct validity. Finally, the psychometric properties of the SAS-EB, its utility, and its limitations are discussed along with considerations for future research.

Scale development: ten main limitations and recommendations to improve future research practices

“…The results of this review show that only a minority of studies considered the review of the scales' items by members of the target population (e.g., Uzunboylu and Ozdamli 2011;Zheng et al 2010). In addition, a smaller minority combined the two approaches in the assessment of item content (e.g., Mahudin et al 2012;Morgado et al 2014). The limited use of target population opinions is a problem.…”

“…One hypothesis for this limitation may be the lack of gold standard measures to assess similar constructs as those of a new scale. In such cases, a relatively recent study by Morgado et al (2014) offers a valid alternative. The authors used information collected on sociodemographic questionnaires (e.g., level of education and intensity of physical activity) to correlate with the constructs of interest.…”

Validity and Reliability of a Self-Acceptance Scale for Youth with Physical Disabilities

“…In previous studies (Chen et al, 2015;Jo et al, 2010), reliability values of .89 and .934 for the scale have been recorded. The creation and validation of the Self-Acceptance Scale for Persons with Early Blindness (SAS-EB) were undertaken by Morgado et al (2014). The research participants were individuals with early-onset blindness.…”

“…In summary, this study examined whether the previous subscales in the measurement of self-acceptance of disabilities (Chiu et al, 2013;da Rocha Morgado et al, 2014;Groomes & Linkowski, 2007) could be adapted to apply to those who are physically disabled in Malaysia. This is the first study to have identified family support as one of the subscales in measuring people's selfacceptance of physical disabilities.…”

Adventitious blindness: The road to self-acceptance

“…These are body acceptance, self-protection from negative judgments from others, and feeling and believing in one's capacities (Morgado, Campana, & Tavares, 2014). Furthermore, self-acceptance meets a majority of the criteria by which a human quality or characteristic qualifies as a positive strength or virtue including: contributes to the individual's fulfillment; is morally valued; does not diminish other people in any way; occurs in a variety of situations and behaviors; is distinct from other positive traits, is embodied in "consensual paragons"; and the extent of negative behavior when the quality is absent (Peterson & Seligman, 2004, as cited in Bernard, 2013.…”