An Examination of the Psychometric Properties of the Consultation Self-Efficacy Scale in Taiwan

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to examine an adaptation of the Consultation Self-Efficacy Scale (CSES) and its psychometric properties among Chinese-speaking populations. The participants included 428 undergraduate and graduate-level students from school counseling training programs in Taiwan. We performed exploratory factor analyses to examine the factor structure of the Chinese version of the CSES and identified five relevant factors that were different from the original factor structure: (a) Process and Awareness, (b) Client Skills, (c) Cultural Sensitivity, (d) Intervention, and (e) Facilitation. The results of reliability estimates supported the internal consistency of each factor (ω and α >.91). Collectively, the five factors accounted for 67.59% of the variance among the items, indicating its psychometric adequacy. Possible explanations for the restructuring of the CSES factors with the cross-cultural sample are discussed. The validated Chinese version of the CSES can be utilized as a progress monitoring or outcome measure for pre-service and in-service consultation training purposes in Taiwan. Additional validation research is warranted for generalization of its usage to other Chinese-speaking professions.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Chung-Hau Fan

Chung-Hau (Howard) Fan, Ph.D., NCSP, is an associate professor in the Department of School Psychology and Educational Leadership at Idaho State University. His current research focuses on improving response-to-intervention (RTI) methodologies, including reduction of measurement error for progress monitoring and systemic troubleshooting for effective RTI implementation. Other areas of interest include special education leadership, behavioral consultation training, nondiscriminatory cognitive assessment with cross-cultural students, and autism spectrum disorders.

Yanchen Zhang

Yanchen Zhang, Ph.D., NCSP, is an Assistant Professor of Psychology at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. He is passionate about applied research on school-based implementation science (e.g., mental health, MTSS), technology innovation, advanced methodology/statistics, and international psychology.

Ya-Ting Juang

Ya-Ting Juang, Ph.D., is an assistant professor in the Department of Psychology and Counseling at University of Taipei. Her research interests include play therapy, professional development and field supervision in school counseling, qualitative research methodology, and theory and practice of guidance.

Nai-Jiin Yang

Nai-Jiin Yang, Ed.S. is a school psychologist working at Jefferson School District in Idaho as well as a doctoral student in the School Psychology Program at the Utah State University. Her research interests include instructional and behavioral consultation, and implementation of evidence-based practices (EBPs) in areas of behavioral, academic, and mental health services in school settings.