Reliability of the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills in Individuals with Severe Retardation (MESSIER)

Abstract

Recently, the concepts of social competence and social skills have become important aspects of the evolving definitions of mental retardation. However, no psychometrically sound instruments exist for assessing social skills in lower functioning developmentally disabled people. This study examined the psychometric properties of the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills for Individuals with Severe Retardation (MESSIER)—a new scale designed to measure social skills in adults with severe developmental disabilities. The authors conducted a preliminary evaluation of the test-retest and interrater reliability of the MESSIER. It was determined that the MESSIER has high stability across raters and good stability over time. In addition, good internal consistency was established with coefficient alpha. Potential uses for the scale and directions for future research are discussed.

References

American Psychiatric Association . (1994). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.

Asher, S. R. , & Renshaw, P. (1981). Children without friends: Social knowledge and social skill training. In S. Asher & J. Gottman (Eds.), The development of children’s friendships. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Cooper, J. O. , Heron, T. E. , & Heward, W. L. (1987). Applied behavior analysis. New York: Macmillan.

Crocker, L. , & Algina, J. (1986). Introduction to classical and modern test theory. Orlando, FL: Harcourt Brace.

Guralnick, M. J. (1986). The peer relations of young handicapped and nonhandicapped children. In P. S. Strain , M. J. Guralnick , & H. M. Walker (Eds.), Children’s social behavior: Development, assessment, and modification. San Diego, CA: Academic Press.

Guralnick, M. J. , & Kravik, M. A. (1973). Reinforcement procedures and social behavior in a group context with severely retarded children. Psychological Reports, 32, 295-301.

Irvin, D. , Realon, R. , Hartley, R. , Phillips, J. , Bradley, F. , & Daly, M. (1996). The treatment of self-injurious hand mouthing by using multicomponent intervention with a group of indi viduals with profound multiple disabilities. Journal of Developmental and Physical Disabilities, 8, 43-59.

Lovett, D. L. , & Harris, M. B. (1987). Identification of important community living skills for adults with mental retardation. Rehabilitation Counseling Bulletin, 34-41.

Matson, J. L. , & Swiezy, N. (1994). Social skills training with autistic children. In J. Matson (Ed.), Autism in children and adults. Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole.

10.

Reid, D. H. , & Farrell, J. E. (1984). Group instruction with persons who have severe disabilities: A critical review. Journal of the Association for Persons with Severe Handicaps, 9, 167-177.

11.

Singh, N. N. , & Winton, A.S.W. (1983). Social skills training with institutionalized severely and profoundly mentally retarded persons. Applied Research in Mental Retardation, 4, 383-398.

12.

Siperstein, G. N. (1992). Social competence: An important construct in mental retardation. American Journal on Mental Retardation, 96, iii-iv.

13.

Warren, S. F. , Baxter, D. K. , Anderson, S. R. , Marshall, A. , & Baer, D. M. (1981). Generalization of question asking by severely retarded individuals. Journal of the Association for the Severely Handicapped, 6, 15-22.

14.

Whitman, T. L. , Mercurio, J. R. , & Caponigri, C. (1970). Development of social responses in two severely retarded children. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 3, 133-138.