Elsevier

Applied Nursing Research

Volume 32, November 2016, Pages 73-79
Applied Nursing Research

Original Article
Coping measurement: Creating short form of Coping and Adaptation Processing Scale using item response theory and patients dealing with chronic and acute health conditions

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apnr.2016.06.002Get rights and content

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to enhance the CAPS tool by clarifying the concept of coping, using item response theory (IRT) to shorten and assess the metric equivalence of the scale, and testing the preliminary validity of the resulting shortened scale.

Methods

A descriptive design of participants from different ethnic backgrounds was employed (USA n = 347 and Panama n = 327). To select items for the shortened CAPS, a well-established multi-step process grounded in IRT was used. Further, a coping ladder was created to approximate the a priori perceived location/difficulty of each item along the coping trait scale. Items for the shortened scale were selected based on considerations central to the middle range theory of coping and adaptation processing and the results of the item calibration and model testing.

Results

A total of 15 items were selected. The selected items were well distributed on the coping ladder and all basic subconcepts of the middle range theory were included. Further the sum of the DIF size for the selected short form items is − 0.01, so the overall bias of the total score is minimal. Finally, concurrent and divergent validity of the new scale was demonstrated in two separate correlational studies.

Conclusion

The 15-item Coping and Adaptation Processing Scale (CAPS)--Short-Form can be a practical tool to effectively and efficiently measure coping and adaptation in both practice and research for people dealing with both chronic and acute health conditions.

Section snippets

Theoretical and conceptual basis of coping and the 47-item CAPS

Coping as a construct has a long history in studying people and their health. Initially studies focused on psychopathology. Later researchers shifted toward positive behavior and the role of emotions. Significant issues were identified in clarifying the concept and matching it with measurement (Schwarzer & Schwarzer, 1996). After updating a review of the rapidly widening literature on stress and coping, Aldwin (2007) noted that dealing with measurement was still the most controversial issue in

Study samples

A cross-sectional descriptive design using secondary analysis of two samples of participants from different ethnic backgrounds was employed to clarify the concept of coping, test the metric equivalence of the CAPS and shorten the scale while maximizing precision and content coverage. Participants from sample 1 included 347 English speaking patients with chronic neurologic deficits selected by similar nonprobability purposive samples from two national mailing lists of patient support groups (

Findings

To test for model fit, a comparison of the partial credit versus graded response model was done. The calibration of the 47-item CAPS using the partial credit model resulted in a − 2*LL value of 65,764.57, while a graded response model resulted in a − 2*LL value of 65,627.40. The difference in these values (137.17), distributed as chi-square with 94 degrees of freedom was statistically significant (p < 0.05), indicating that the graded response model was a better fit. Moreover, when examining item

Discussion

The 15-item Coping and Adaptation Processing Scale (CAPS)--Short-Form can be a practical tool to effectively and efficiently measure coping and adaptation in people dealing with both chronic and acute health conditions. The use of IRT helped us maximize the precision of the 15-item CAPS while also ensuring adequate content coverage across the coping scale and domains of the middle range theory. Future research involves testing the tool in various clinical population and global settings. Of

Conclusion

The revised Coping and Adaptation Processing Scale (CAPS)--Short-Form can be useful in both practice and research for nurses who deal with people adapting to chronic and acute health conditions. This project can lead to cumulative knowledge about coping and efforts to increase its effectiveness in the countless situations that people meet in changing health and illness. As an outcome measure for nursing interventions, the shortened tool is welcome in research. Nurses can help patients to

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    Permanent: Internal Medicine Nursing Department, Faculty of Health Sciences, Pamukkale University, Kinikli Campus, Denizli, Turkey.

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