Individualized Rating Scales (IRS)

Individualized Rating Scales (IRS)

Rating Scale • Measurement instrument used to elicit a rating. • A rating is a systematic estimation of some attribute of a person, object, or event along some dimension (e.g., degree of agreement about finances)

Individualized Rating Scale (IRS) • Scales for rating the degree, magnitude, and intensity of problems identified for individual clients • Tailor-made for each client • Also known as a “target complaint scale”

Constructing IRS’s • Identify and define problems • Select rating dimensions • Select number of response categories • Select rating scale anchors • Create equidistant response categories • Select time period, event, or situation • Set goals

Identify and Define Problems Identify, conceptualize, and operationalize problems

Select Rating Dimensions • Quantitative quality or property (i.e., attribute) of a person, object, or event • Quality of social support or of time spent with a spouse, children, or friends, etc. • Degree of impairment caused by self-injurious thoughts, panic attacks, alcohol consumption, illegal drug use, or diabetes, etc. • Severity of drug or alcohol cravings, stress, self-deprecating or intrusive thoughts, or tension or migraine headaches, etc.

Select Number of Response Categories • Point on a rating scale that represents the degree, magnitude, or intensity of an outcome • Can influence reliability and validity • Large enough to detect important differences, but not so large that it is difficult to distinguish among categories • 7 plus or minus 2 (i.e., 5 to 9)

Select Rating Scale Anchors • Brief (usually) explicit labels, descriptions, or examples used to define points or numbers on a rating scale (e.g., 1 = poor, 2 = fair, 3 = good, 4 = very good, 5 = excellent). • Define numbers • Higher numbers should represent more of the dimension measured • Anchors should be congruent with the problem being rated

Select Rating Scale Anchors (cont’d) • Individualized or generic anchors • Generic anchors can be applied to a wide variety of problems and clients allow comparability across problems • Individualized anchors may be more relevant and meaningful to clients

Create Equidistant Response Categories • Makes it easier to evaluate change • View as a thermometer

Select Time Period, Event, or Situation • Certain time at the end of each day or week • In response to a certain event or situation such as after an interaction with a particular person

Set Goals and Objectives • Point on the scale that the client, you, or a relevant other hopes to achieve • Percentage change

Decide Who, Where, When, and How Often to Collect Data • Select respondent(s) • Decide when and where to collect ratings • Decide how often to collect ratings

Who? • Clients • Practitioners • Relevant others • Independent evaluator

When and Where? • Representative times and conditions • Conditions conducive to accurate measurement • Standardize times and conditions

How Often? • Regular, frequent, pre-designated intervals to monitor clients’ progress, before, during, and after intervention • Often enough to detect significant changes, but not so often that it burdensome to the rater or intrudes on intervention efforts

Engage and Prepare Clients • Be certain the client understands and accepts the value and purpose of monitoring progress • Discuss confidentiality • Present measures with confidence • Don’t ask for info the client can’t provide • Be sure the client is prepared • Be careful how you respond to information • Use the information that is collected

Advantages of IRSs • Can be completed by clients, practitioners, relevant others, or independent evaluators • Tailored to individual clients • Flexibility in the type of problem • Measure the degree, magnitude, or intensity of problems • Easy to use, and so can be used frequently • Easy to interpret

Precautions in Using IRSs • Consider behavioral observation when interest is in measuring the duration or frequency of a behavior • Consider standardized scales when interest is in measuring a construct with general relevance to different clients

Individualized Rating Scales (IRS)