Self-concept clarity in social anxiety: psychometric properties and factor structure of the Self-Concept Clarity Scale in a social anxiety disorder sample

Glezakis, K; Burton, AL; Abbott, MJ; Norton, AR

Self-concept clarity in social anxiety: psychometric properties and factor structure of the Self-Concept Clarity Scale in a social anxiety disorder sample

Glezakis, K Burton, AL Abbott, MJ Norton, AR

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Publisher:: TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Clinical Psychologist, 2024, 28, (2), pp. 111-121
Issue Date:: 2024-01-01

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Glezakis, K
dc.contributor.author	Burton, AL
dc.contributor.author	Abbott, MJ
dc.contributor.author	Norton, AR
dc.date.accessioned	2024-09-27T05:50:22Z
dc.date.available	2024-09-27T05:50:22Z
dc.date.issued	2024-01-01
dc.identifier.citation	Clinical Psychologist, 2024, 28, (2), pp. 111-121
dc.identifier.issn	1328-4207
dc.identifier.issn	1742-9552
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/181056
dc.description.abstract	Background: The Self-Concept Clarity Scale (SCCS) is a 12-item self-report measure that assesses self-concept clarity (SCC). Previous research has identified a relationship between lower SCC and higher levels of social anxiety. As a measure of positive psychological well-being, the SCCS can be used as a tool to examine and monitor SCC in populations with social anxiety disorder (SAD) who appear to be susceptible to inconsistent or unstable self-concept. However, the scale has yet to be validated with a SAD sample. Methods: A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted on the SCCS data of sample of 87 individuals who met criteria for a diagnosis of SAD (M = 20.15, SD = 3.55; 83% female) and the reliability, convergent validity and norm scores of the SCCS with a SAD were also investigated. Results: Results of the CFA supported a unidimensional factor structure. The SCCS was found to have good internal consistency (Cronbach’s α =.80) and SCCS scores were found to correlate with measures of psychological distress and social fears, however, no correlation was found with measures of social anxiety behaviours. Also, overall results found that the SAD sample scored lower on SCC than other clinical samples in previous literature. Conclusions: These findings suggest that the SCCS is a psychometrically sound measure with unidimensional factor structure and demonstrated reliability and validity with a SAD sample, although additional research is warranted to replicate and extend the results of the current research.
dc.language	English
dc.publisher	TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD
dc.relation.ispartof	Clinical Psychologist
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1080/13284207.2024.2311104
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.subject	1701 Psychology, 1702 Cognitive Sciences
dc.subject.classification	5201 Applied and developmental psychology
dc.subject.classification	5203 Clinical and health psychology
dc.title	Self-concept clarity in social anxiety: psychometric properties and factor structure of the Self-Concept Clarity Scale in a social anxiety disorder sample
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	28
utslib.for	1701 Psychology
utslib.for	1702 Cognitive Sciences
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Health
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Health/Graduate School of Health
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Health/Graduate School of Health/GSH.Clinical Psychology
utslib.copyright.status	open_access	*
dc.rights.license	This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0). To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
dc.date.updated	2024-09-27T05:50:20Z
pubs.issue	2
pubs.publication-status	Published
pubs.volume	28
utslib.citation.issue	2

Abstract:

Background: The Self-Concept Clarity Scale (SCCS) is a 12-item self-report measure that assesses self-concept clarity (SCC). Previous research has identified a relationship between lower SCC and higher levels of social anxiety. As a measure of positive psychological well-being, the SCCS can be used as a tool to examine and monitor SCC in populations with social anxiety disorder (SAD) who appear to be susceptible to inconsistent or unstable self-concept. However, the scale has yet to be validated with a SAD sample. Methods: A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted on the SCCS data of sample of 87 individuals who met criteria for a diagnosis of SAD (M = 20.15, SD = 3.55; 83% female) and the reliability, convergent validity and norm scores of the SCCS with a SAD were also investigated. Results: Results of the CFA supported a unidimensional factor structure. The SCCS was found to have good internal consistency (Cronbach’s α =.80) and SCCS scores were found to correlate with measures of psychological distress and social fears, however, no correlation was found with measures of social anxiety behaviours. Also, overall results found that the SAD sample scored lower on SCC than other clinical samples in previous literature. Conclusions: These findings suggest that the SCCS is a psychometrically sound measure with unidimensional factor structure and demonstrated reliability and validity with a SAD sample, although additional research is warranted to replicate and extend the results of the current research.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/181056