Professor-Student Rapport Scale: Psychometric properties of the brief version

Abstract

The original Professor-Student Rapport Scale contained 34 items and predicted several single-item student outcomes. A high level of internal consistency encouraged the development of a shorter measure in order to address apparent redundancy. Our goals in the current study were to provide psychometric data for the brief version of the scale and to evaluate its ability to predict student outcomes based on more rigorous student-outcome assessments. We found the brief version of the scale demonstrated reliability and validity and significantly predicted rigorous assessments of student outcomes. We suggest that the brief version of the Professor-Student Rapport Scale, with only 6 items, can be used for formative assessment. Instructors can address issues concerning rapport and potentially enhance student outcomes.

Keywords

• Professor-student rapport
• Assessment
• Psychometrics
• Formative evaluation
• Professor immediacy