CONSTRUCTION OF PARENTAL PRESSURE QUESTIONNAIRE Need for the Scale: In order to study the contribution of parental pressure in the determination of stress among adolescents, a need was felt for constructing a questionnaire to measure the parental pressure. So the present research work, the researcher tried to make and standardize Parental Pressure Questionnaire. Steps in the Construction of the Scale (1) Planning of the Test: A rough outline was made about the major factors related to parental pressure of adolescents (girls and boys) before collecting the objects. The factors that were important indicators for this variable are as follows: (a) Autonomy: Autonomy shows itself in increasing independence felt by adolescents to take decisions and to carry out actions. (b) Relatedness: Adolescents continue to express strong stance of attachment to their parents, but their new strivings for independence force them to untie these ties. (2) Item Selection: In order to cover up all the major factors regarding parental pressure of adolescents, the items were proficiently written. In research of items Books/journals, write ups and subject experts were consulted. The researcher wrote some items through insight. Primarily 20 yes or no type items were organized in Hindi. Examples of few items of parental pressure 1- esjs ekrk & firk dhkh Hkh esjs vadks ls [kq k@izluu ugha gksrs gsa gk @ ugh 2- esjs ekrk & firk esjh NksVh xyfr;ksa ij Hkh eq>s {kek ugh djrsa gk @ ugh 3- esjs ekrk & firk eq>s viuh vkdka{kkvks dh iwrhz dk lk/ku le>rs gsa gk @ ugh 90
(3) Pilot Study: A small set of 30 adolescents (girls and boys) was taken for pilot study. The investigator planned to rewrite the statements because some defects were found in the level. Certain statements were reduced and pointed out to avoid any doubt. (4) First Draft: The following instructions were given by the investigator to adolescents (girls and boys) when the scale was administered. This is a parental pressure questionnaire. Illustrate your answers to the given questions on the basis of your parent s pressure on your decision making and routine activities. Two options are given in front of each item which are yes and no. You have to tick ( ) mark on any one option which you think is most suitable to you. This way, you have to mark tick in front of all the items. There is no definite time limit but try to finish as soon as possible. Your answer will be kept confidential. The scoring was done by the scoring key. The choice that indicated parental pressure was given higher score. The scores given were 0 or 1. It was noticed that higher the score higher the parental pressure. If the statement showed higher parental pressure scoring was done as 1, and if the statement was showing lower parental pressure (0) score was given. After deciding the scoring system the 1 st draft was administered on 50 adolescents (girls and boys) (1 st tryout). The responses were obtained and scoring was done. Some items were found to be defective and were therefore discarded or improved. Thus the scale was finally written and drafted. (5) Item Analysis: Items in the first draft were administered on a small sample of 50 adolescents and Point Biserial Coefficient of Correlation were obtained between item 91
scores and total scores. The Point Biserial Coefficient of Correlation for the final draft of the test is shown in table 3.1. Item analysis was done to reduce the number of items by discarding the ambiguous and irrelevant items, i.e. items with very low r pbis. Table: 3.1: Item Analysis: The Point Biserial Coefficient of Correlation Items rp bis 1 0.17 2 0.25 3 0.13 4 0.50 5 0.10 6 0.39 7 0.39 8 0.39 9 0.06 10 0.21 11 0.032 12 0.052 13 0.35 14 0.74 15 0.44 16 0.25 17 0.15 18 0.45 19 0.08 20 0.74 The items of the scale whose point biserial coefficient of correlation was.15 or less were considered to be defective. These items were therefore discarded. These are item no.5 (.10), 9 (.06), 14 (.09), 17 (.15), 19 (.08) (6) Final Draft: After item analysis, the final form of the parental pressure questionnaire was made. It has 15 items and responses are obtained as Yes or No in simple Hindi language. The scores range from 0 to 15. 92
Reliability: For a test to be good it must also be reliable. Test retest reliability was calculated for this scale. A sample of 50 adolescents (girls and boys) filled the scale. After the gap of 25 days, they were again made to fill the scale under similar conditions. The coefficient of correlation of scores on the test and retest were obtained. Test-retest reliability of Parental Pressure is 0.68 Therefore test retest reliability coefficient of scale is high. Validity: As the scale was checked for its internal consistency by calculating Point Biserial Coefficient of Correlation, which came out to be.13 to.74, the test has high construct validity. (B) CONSTRUCTION OF PEER GROUP EFFECT QUESTIONNAIRE: Need for the Scale: Peer groups are a significant effect throughout one's life, but they are more vital during the developmental years of childhood and adolescence. It appears that the power of the peer group becomes more important when the family ties are not close or supportive. There was no such scale existing which could realize the purpose of measuring peer group effect. Therefore the investigator tried to construct and standardize Peer Group Effect Questionnaire. Steps in the Construction of the Scale (1) Planning of the Test: Planning the test was important. Robin and Johnson (1996) found that importance of peer pressure regarding adolescent use of alcohol, cigarettes and drugs. They found that both peer approval and disapproval were important. The greater the peer pressure against use the less frequent the use. A rough draft was made about the 93
factors to be included under the peer group effect questionnaire before collecting the items. The factors that were considered as important indicators are as follows: (a) Open (b) Honest (c) Cooperation generosity (d) Mutual affirmation (e) Self disclosure (2) Item Selection: The items were covering all the major factors of peer group effect of adolescents. Experts were consulted in preparation of items. Initially the numbers of items prepared were 19 in Hindi language. Some of the items are as such: 1- es Hkh branded cloths iguuk pkgrh @ pgrk gw A tsls esjs d{kk ds lqunj ym+ds@ym+fd;k igurs gsa gk @ ugh 2- ejh bpnk gs fd esjs ikl,d motor bike gks ftlls fd es nwljks dks izhkkfor dj ldw A gk @ ugh 3- es vius friend ds tsls wrist watch ysus pkgrh@pkgrk gw A gk @ ugh (3) Pilot Study: A small cluster of 30 adolescents (girls alongwith boys) was taken for Pilot study. The investigator decided to redraft the statements because some problems were found in the scale. Some of the statements were changed in simple language. The statements which were too long and ambiguous, these statements were modified. Some of statements were discarded because those statements did not have direct relation to peer group effect. (4) First Draft: This was the essential phase of the test drafting as most of the work was edited. Important changes that were made consisted of the change in the language of the statements which were unclear and difficult to understand. Some of the items which did 94
not express the clear idea were rewritten with the help of experts and the corrected items finally got rechecked by the experts. The following instructions were given by the investigator to adolescents (girls and boys) when the scale was administered. This is a parental pressure questionnaire. Give your replies to the following questions in the light of your parent s pressure on your decision making and routine activities. Two options are given in front of each item which are yes and no. You have to tick ( ) mark on any one option which you think is most suitable to you. This way, you have to mark tick in front of all the items. There is no exact time limit but try to finish as soon as possible. Your answer will be kept confidential. The work was done by the scoring key. The choice that pointed peer group effect was given more scores. The scores given were 0 or 1. It was noticed that higher the scores higher is the peer group effect. If the statement was showing higher peer group effect scoring was done as 1, and if the statement was showing lower peer group effect (0) score was given. After deciding the scoring system the 1 st draft was administered on 50 adolescents (girls and boys) this was the 1st tryout. The responses were obtained and scoring was done. Some items were found to be defective and were therefore discarded or improved. (5) The Final Draft: After the selection and improvement of the items the final draft of the Scale for Peer Group Effect was formed. It has 14 items and responses are obtained as Yes and No in simple Hindi language. Scores on each item was correlated with the total test scores on the scale. The investigator took ratings of peer group effect of 50 adolescents by friends of those adolescents on a five point scale. The rating scores were 95
correlated with the scores of peer group effect of those adolescents. The product moment r came out to be r =.10 which indicates criterion related validity of the test. Reliability: For a test to be good it must also be reliable. Test retest reliability was calculated for this scale. A sample of 50 adolescents (girls and boys) filled the scale. After the gap of 25 days they were again made to fill the scale under similar conditions. The coefficient of correlation of scores on the test and retest were obtained. Test-retest reliability coefficient of Peer Group Effect questionnaire came out to be 0.76. Therefore test retest reliability coefficient of Peer Group Effect Questionnaire is high. Validity: The scale was used on a sample of 50 adolescents (girls and boys). The scale was checked for its criterion validity by calculating product moment correlation with ratings of those adolescents. (C) CONSTRUCTION OF FAMILY SOCIAL SUPPORT SCALE Need for the Scale: Support from society is one of the various factors in predicting health and wellness of human being, ranging from childhood to older age. The family support received by adolescents seems to be an important factor in successfully overcoming stress of their life. The cognition of presence of social support considerably predicts the individual's ability to deal with stress. An important psychological factor which helps them to forget the negative aspects of their lives is cared for and valued by others, and positive attitude about their life. Therefore in the present study investigator tried to create and standardize Family Social Support Scale for adolescents. 96
Steps in the Construction of the Scale (1) Planning of the Test: Family climate is a product of the interactions of all family members who, as a result of such interactions, come to assume special roles. Each member helps establish every other member s role, and his own role is in turn affected by those of all the others. Each relationship is unique and is a compound of many factors. These unique relationships provide supports to adolescents in the family. Thus family social support may act as important coping strategy to adolescents stress. An uneven plan was made before collection of items regarding the major factors related to family social support of adolescents. (2) Item Selection: In order to cover all the major factors of family social support of adolescents, the items were expertly written. Books/journals, magazines and subject experts were consulted in preparation of items. Investigator wrote some items through insight. Initially 35 multiple choice type items were prepared in English. (3) Pilot Study: A small group of 30 adolescents (girls and boys) was taken for pilot study by the administrating scale. Investigator planned to rewrite the statements because certain defects were found in the scale. Some of the statements were edited and pin pointed to avoid any uncertainty. (4) First Draft: Major changes were regarding the alteration of the language of the statements. Some of the statements which did not express the clear thought were rewritten with the help of experts. The following directions were given by the investigator to adolescents (girls and boys) when the scale was administered:- There are five options given in front of each item which are Strongly Disagree (SD), Disagree (D), Uncertain (U), Agree (A) and Strongly Agree (SA). You have to tick ( ) mark on any 97
one option which you think is most suitable to you. This way, you have to mark tick in front of all the items. After filling this scale return it to me. There is no definite time limit but try to complete as soon as possible. Your answer will be kept confidential. Formation of scoring key for the answers was the major work done.. Responses were made on five point scale, so the scores given were 1,2,3,4 and 5. It was determined that higher the scores higher is the family social support. Therefore scale was written correctly and ultimately drafted. Some items were found to be defective and were therefore discarded or improved. (5) The Final Draft: After the selection and improvement of items the final draft of the family social support scale was made. It has 28 items and responses are obtained on a five point scale ranging from strongly disagree to strongly agree. Reliability: - A test to be good it must also be reliable. Test retest reliability was calculated for this scale as no alternate form was available. A sample of 50 adolescents (girls and boys) filled the scale. After the gap of 25 days. They were again made to fill the scale under similar conditions. The coefficient of correlation of scores on the test and retest were obtained. Test-retest reliability coefficient of Family Social Support Scale came out to be 0.84 Therefore test retest reliability coefficient of family social support scale is high. 98
(D) CONSTRUCTION OF STRESS SCALE FOR ADOLESCENTS: Need for the Scale: The teenager years are said to be the most worrying time in person s life. Adolescence is the time of life when children change into adults. They are going through teenage years, changing expectations of others, and coping with feelings that may be new to them. Modern life is full of frustrations, hassles and demands. Stress has become a part of life for many of people. Stress is not bad in all cases. It can help a person to perform under pressure if it is for time being and can motivate him to do his best, but when constantly running, both mind and body pay the price. So one can protect oneself by learning how to identify the symbols and symptoms of strain and taking steps to decrease its harmful effects. Therefore present research investigator tried to construct and standardize a Stress Scale for Adolescents. Steps in the Construction of the Scale (1) Planning of the Test: Planning of the test was based on the definition by Selye (1936), any exterior or any interior drive which threatens to upset the organism s equilibrium is stress. A rough plan was made concerning the factors to be included in the Stress Scale. The factors that were considered as important indicators are as follows: (a) Rejection (b) Hard competition in exams (c) Excessive pressure of studies or work (d) Family or community violence 99
(2) Item Selection: To make a good test of special stress scale for teenagers, the items were skillfully written and uncertain statements were avoided. While writing items help was taken from various books/journals, and experts were consulted in preparation of items. Numbers of objects prepared initially were twenty. A large number of the statements related to stress were written along with yes or no type responses. Some of the items are as such: 1. Indicate the extent to which your school has been stressful to you. 6. Do you feel under stress due to examination? If so, indicate the extent of stress you feel. (3) Pilot Study: A pilot study was done by using the scale to a small group of 30 adolescents (girls and boys). There were certain difficulties found in the scale so the investigator decided to rephrase the statements. The statements which were in interrogative forms were changed to simple statements. The statements which were felt to be too lengthy and were found to be ambiguous were also modified. Some of the statements were discarded because it was felt that those statements did not have direct relation to stress. (4) First Draft: This was an important phase of the test drafting, because most of the editing work was done. Major changes that were made consisted of the modification of the language of the statements that were vague and difficult to understand. Some statements which did not convey the clear idea were rewritten with the help of experts. The following instructions were given by the investigator to adolescents (girls and boys) when the scale was administered. There are some statements related to stress. There are four options in front of each item which are Not at all, Little/Mild/Sometimes, Moderate/ Many times and Severe/Often. You have to tick ( ) mark on any one option which 100
you think is most suitable to you. This way, you have to mark tick in front of all the items. After filling this scale return it to me. There is no definite time limit but try to complete as soon as possible. Your answer will be kept confidential. The major work done was the formation of scoring key for the answers, to give objectivity to the scale. Responses were made on a 4 point scale rather than yes or no. The responses are Not at all, Little/Mild/Sometimes, Moderate/Many Times and Severe/Often. The scores given were 0,1,2,3. It was decided that higher the scores higher the stress. Thus the scale was written properly and finally the 1 draft was administered on 50 adolescents (girls and boys) (1 st tryout). The responses were obtained and scoring was done. Some items were found to be defective and were therefore discarded or improved. Thus the final draft scale was written. (5) Item Analysis: Items in the first draft were administered on a small sample of 50 adolescents. After the first draft, item analysis was done to find out the internal consistency of the scale. Biserial Coefficient of Correlation was calculated and scores obtained were as follows: 101
Table: 3.2: Item Analysis: The Biserial Coefficient of Correlation Items bis r 1 0.34 2 0.29 3-0.30 4 0.61 5 0.50 6 0.06 7 0.72 8 0.04 9 0.54 10 0.49 11-0.21 12 0.42 13 0.05 14 0.20 15 0.59 After item analysis those items of the scale whose biserial coefficient of correlation were negative or less than 0.10 were considered to be defective. These items were therefore discarded. These are follows: item no.3 (-.30), 6 (.06), 8 (.04), 11 (-.21), 13 (.05). These items are discarded. (6) Final Draft: After item analysis, the final form of the Stress Scale for Adolescents was made. It has 10 items and responses are obtained on a four point scale in simple English language. Reliability: - For a test to be good it must be reliable. Test retest reliability was calculated for this scale. A sample of 50 adolescents (girls and boys) filled the scale after the gap of 25 days. They were again made to fill the scale under similar conditions. The coefficient of correlation of scores on the test and retest were obtained. Test-retest reliability score is 0.93 which shows high reliability of the scale. 102
Validity: - The scale was tested on a sample of 50 adolescents (girls and boys). The scale was checked for its internal consistency by calculating point biserial coefficient of correlation, which ranged from rpbis =.20 to.72. 103