Devleoping A Scaled To Research And Evaluate Youth Leadership Like Skills Development

Abstract

In agricultural education, both 4-H and FFA have identified leadership development as central to their mission. Many Cooperative Extension Service and agricultural educators, members, and alumni think these organizations provide effective leadership programming. However, there is little research to support that viewpoint. The purpose of this study was to develop a valid, reliable scale to measure youth leadership life skills development. The first phase involved the conceptualization and operationalization of youth leadership life skills development (YLLSD). YLLSD was conceptualized as having seven sub-domains (Miller, 1976) and operationalized with 68 indicators. Each indicator used a four point Likert-type subscale. Face and content validity were assessed by a panel of experts. In the second phase, construct validity, reliability, and dimensionality were assessed. Data were collected during September and October, 1992, following the Dillman procedure. The target population was 6,388 senior 4-H and FFA members from New Mexico. A random sample of 400, stratified proportionally to ensure organizational representation was generated. A usable return rate of 66% was obtained. No differences were found between respondents and nonrespondents. During construct validity assessment, indicators of youth leadership life skills development were eliminated through item analysis, internal structure relationships, and cross-structure relationships. The final summated scale of 30 indicators had a Cronbach's alpha reliability coefficient of .98. Factor analysis was used to assess dimensionality. Although the final scale contains indicators from the seven original conceptual domains, youth in the study perceived the construct to be unidimensional.

The Impact of Beef Cattle Projects on Youth Leadership Life Skills Development

“…Dormody and Seevers (1994) defined youth leadership life skills as those skills needed to become a leader as an adult. In addition, Miller (as cited in Bruce, Boyd, & Dooley, 2004) Using Miller's categorical breakdown of leadership life skills, Seevers, Dormody, and Clason (1995) developed the Youth Leadership Life Skills Development Scale (YLLSDS). The YLLSDS instrument consists of 30 questions with established reliability (Cronbach's alpha coefficient of 0.98) and validity (Seevers, et al, 1995).…”

Development of a Web‐Based Evaluation System: A Tool for Measuring Life Skills in Youth and Family Programs*

“…Many youth and adult programs today attempt to assess participant growth in the area of basic life skills (Hendricks, 1998; Landman, Irvin, & Halpern, 1980; Olson & Smith, 1997; Seevers, Dormody, & Clason, 1995; Ward, 1996). Life skills are skills thought to be necessary for individuals to function competently in everyday life (Landman, et al), including the ability to handle finances and other resources, work effectively with others, communicate well, and make effective decisions.…”

“…Some focus on life skills needed by adolescents (Gamon & Dehegedus‐Hetzel, 1994; Picklesimer, Hooper, & Ginter, 1998; Poole & Evans, 1989), whereas others target adult populations (Olson & Smith, 1997). Often an instrument is developed by the evaluator to assess the life skills learned in the specific program being evaluated (e.g., see Seevers et al, 1995; Ward, 1996). We were unable to locate instruments for assessing growth in life skills by both youth and adults in education and skill building programs for the general public.…”

The Effectiveness of Leadership Skills Development Program for University Students / Üniversite Öğrencilerine Yönelik Liderlik Becerileri Geliştirme Programının Etkililiği

“…There are variety of studies in the literature both on students studying at higher education and on the effectiveness of leadership education programs at other school levels (e.g., Hindes, Thorne, Schwean and McKeough, 2008;Martel, 1989;Meyer, 1995;Seevers, Dormody, Clason, 1995). It has been stated in a meta-analysis study conducted that 65% of the sample consists of higher education students in the studies conducted on the effectiveness of the leadership training (Avolio, Chan and Chan, 2005).…”