Older Adult Measure
Social isolation measure
What is this measuring?
Measures social isolation – the opposite of social well-being – in older adults.
Source(s)
Nicholson Jr, N. R., Feinn, R., Casey, E. A., & Dixon, J. (2020). Psychometric evaluation of the social isolation scale in older adults. The Gerontologist, 60(7), e491-e501.
Survey items and coding/answer choices
Please answer the questions below about your interaction with others. Thinking about your family, friends, or neighbors…
| Interaction | None | 1 | 2-3 | 4-5 | 6 or more |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. How many of them do you see face-to-face at least once a month? | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 2. How many of them do you communicate with on a personal level by phone or electronically (e.g., by email, video chat, and/or internet) at least once a month? | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 3. How many of them do you feel close to on a personal level (e.g., could confide in or share personal feelings with)? | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| Interaction | 1 Strongly disagree | 2 Somewhat disagree | 3 Neither agree nor disagree | 4 Somewhat agree | 5 Strongly agree |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4. Overall, I feel that my relationships are fulfilling. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 5. I feel like I just don’t belong. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 6. I feel that I spend enough time involved in social activities. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
Scaling – how to combine items / score
A connectedness subscale is created by summing items 1, 2, and 3.
A belongingness subscale is created by reverse coding item 5 and then summing items 4, reverse-5, and 6.
A total isolation scale score is created by summing all items (with item 5 being reverse coded).
Psychometrics – Cronbach’s alpha if possible
The α values for total (.77) and connectedness (.81) and .63 for the subscale belongingness.