Development and validation of the scale on staff valence under ICF-based practice (SSV-ICF)

Abstract

Purpose

The application of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) model in the field of disability has become a global trend since 2001. However, very little attention has been paid to the impact of ICF-based practices on the staff members involved in implementing them. This study develops and validates a scale with which to measure staff members’ readiness to carry out ICF-based practices, as well as their competency and perceived valences in doing so.

Methods

Staff members holding diverse positions in a non-governmental organisation providing disability services were recruited. An exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were conducted to confirm the factorial structure.

Results

Data for a total of 338 participants were used in the analysis. A CFA of the data collected from the second sub-sample (n = 169) demonstrated that the goodness-of-fit indices of the five-factor model were acceptable. Those five factors are: perceived knowledge, perceived competence, intrapersonal valence, relational valence and perceived meaning. The whole scale achieved excellent reliability (Cronbach’s α = 0.981).

Conclusions

The Scale on Staff Valence under ICF-based practice (SSV-ICF) is a valid and reliable scale to measure disability personnel’s perceived valences under a new ICF-based practice.

Implications for Rehabilitation

• The Scale on Staff Valence under ICF-based Practice (SSV-ICF) is a new scale for measuring the impact of ICF-based practices on staff and to developing evidence-based ICF-related staff training programmes.

• The 27-item five-factor structured SSV-ICF demonstrated acceptable psychometric properties and almost perfect internal consistency.

• The SSV-ICF offers a promising tool for identifying the merits of ICF-based practices and for developing evidence-based staff interventions among different disciplines.

Keywords:

• Factorial structure
• ICF-based practices
• scale validation
• staff valence
• transdisciplinary team

Acknowledgements

We wish to thank the participating organisation, the Fu Hong Society, and its staff members who participated in the study. We extend our thanks to Hong Kong Lutheran Social Services and its staff members who participated in the pilot test. This study was funded by the Direct Grant (2019-2020) from The Chinese University of Hong Kong.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).