Validity of the offender version of the Personal Concerns Inventory with adult male prisoners

Abstract

Measuring offenders’ motivation for treatment is important, yet few measures exist. The Personal Concerns Inventory (PCI), a goal-based assessment, was adapted for offenders by including items relating to offending and prison. The psychometric properties of the resulting Personal Concerns Inventory: Offender Adaptation (PCI-OA) were examined with 129 adult male prisoners. The two factors of the original PCI were replicated and analysis including the new PCI-OA items gave a three-factor solution: adaptive and maladaptive motivation and lack of direction. The adaptive and maladaptive factors were similar to those of the original PCI but showed poorer internal consistency, as did the lack of direction factor. Tests of concurrent validity upheld both the PCI and the PCI-OA factors. Both the PCI and the PCI-OA detected some modest changes over the course of treatment, with the PCI appearing more sensitive to change. We conclude that, although the original PCI has better psychometric properties, it remains important to identify the impact of offending on attainment of life goals. Hence, we believe that the PCI-OA will still be useful, albeit in a slightly different format from that described here. Importantly, offenders’ motivational structure appears similar to that of other populations, providing a basis for further investigation of offenders’ motivational structure.

Keywords:

• assessment of motivation
• offenders
• Personal Concerns Inventory