Psychometric evaluation of a multi‐dimensional measure of satisfaction with behavioral interventions

Abstract

Treatment satisfaction is recognized as an essential aspect in the evaluation of an intervention’s effectiveness, but there is no measure that provides for its comprehensive assessment with regard to behavioral interventions. Informed by a conceptualization generated from a literature review, we developed a measure that covers several domains of satisfaction with behavioral interventions. In this paper, we briefly review its conceptualization and describe the Multi-Dimensional Treatment Satisfaction Measure (MDTSM) subscales. Satisfaction refers to the appraisal of the treatment’s process and outcome attributes. The MDTSM has 11 subscales assessing treatment process and outcome attributes: treatment components’ suitability and utility, attitude toward treatment, desire for continued treatment use, therapist competence and interpersonal style, format and dose, perceived benefits of the health problem and everyday functioning, discomfort, and attribution of outcomes to treatment. The MDTSM was completed by persons (N = 213) in the intervention group in a large trial of a multi-component behavioral intervention for insomnia within 1 week following treatment completion. The MDTSM’s subscales demonstrated internal consistency reliability (α: .65 – .93) and validity (correlated with self-reported adherence and perceived insomnia severity at post-test). The MDTSM subscales can be used to assess satisfaction with behavioral interventions and point to aspects of treatments that are viewed favorably or unfavorably.

Comparing Participants’ Satisfaction with Behavioral Therapies for Chronic Insomnia

“…Total subscale scores were obtained by computing the mean of the item scores for each subscale, with high scores indicating high satisfaction. The MDTSM subscales demonstrated good internal consistency reliability (Cronbach's alpha coefficients > .70) and good validity, as evidenced by the small--to--moderate correlation between the subscales and measures of treatment adherence and outcomes (Sidani et al, 2017).…”

“…Satisfaction with treatment: Satisfaction was assessed with the subscales of the Multi--Dimensional Treatment Satisfaction Measure (MDTSM) developed by Sidani et al (2017). The subscales allow participants to appraise the process and outcome attributes of therapy received.…”

“…This study aimed to fill the gap in knowledge regarding satisfaction with behavioral therapies by comparing how persons with chronic insomnia perceive these. Satisfaction was measured with a validated multi--dimensional instrument (Sidani, Epstein, & Fox, 2017) in a large, pragmatic, partially randomized preference trial (Sidani, Epstein, Bootzin, Miranda, & Cousins, 2015). The trial offered three single--component therapiessleep education and hygiene (SEH), stimulus control therapy (SCT) and sleep restriction therapy (SRT)-and one multi--component therapy (MCT).…”

The contribution of participant, treatment, and outcome factors to treatment satisfaction

“…Satisfaction with the behavioral therapy was assessed with the subscales of the Multi‐Dimensional Treatment Satisfaction Measure developed by Sidani et al (). The subscales invite participants to appraise the process and outcome attributes of a therapy.…”

“…Six process attributes are appraised, including the perceived: (i) suitability of each component; (ii) utility of each component in addressing the health problem targeted by the therapy; (iii) attitude toward the therapy; (iv) desire to continue using the therapy; (v) competence and interpersonal style of the therapist; and (vi) usefulness of the mode and dose of therapy delivery in facilitating the application of treatment recommendations. Three outcome attributes are appraised, including the perceived effectiveness of the therapy in (i) resolving the targeted health problem; (ii) improving general functioning; and (iii) attributing the perceived improvement in the outcomes to the therapy (Sidani, Epstein, & Fox, ).…”